What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
The Winklevoss group has proposed a Zcash exchange-traded fund with a 0.25% annual sponsor fee and a planned Nasdaq listing under ticker WINK. The proposal is not yet an effective registration or a fund that investors can trade: Winklevoss Asset Services, LLC filed a preliminary Form S-1 with the SEC on October 6, 2026, and the filing says shares cannot be sold until the registration statement becomes effective. Read the preliminary SEC filing.
What the proposed WINK Zcash ETF would do
The Winklevoss Zcash ETF is proposed as a passive exchange-traded product that would hold Zcash (ZEC) directly and seek to reflect the price of its ZEC holdings, less expenses and liabilities. It would not use derivatives as its stated route to ZEC exposure or seek returns beyond tracking the asset. The filing says shares are expected to list on Nasdaq under WINK, subject to notice of issuance.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
The sponsor is Winklevoss Asset Services, LLC, wholly owned by Winklevoss Asset Services Holdings, LLC. The filing says the Trust would not be registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, so shareholders would not receive protections afforded to funds registered under that law. It should not be described as a conventional registered mutual fund.
What the proposed 0.25% fee covers
The preliminary S-1 sets a unified Sponsor Fee of 0.25% per year of the Trust’s ZEC holdings. It would accrue daily using the prior day’s holdings and be payable monthly, in ZEC or cash. The sponsor says it will pay normal operating expenses from this fee.
#1 Best Overall
- Zcash Crypto Zcash Cryptocurrency
- Zcash Crypto Zcash Cryptocurrency
- Hardcover journal with 240 line-ruled pages (120 sheets)
- Built-in elastic closure and ribbon bookmark
- Includes an expandable inner storage pocket and a pen holder
That rate is not a complete estimate of every possible cost. Defined extraordinary, nonrecurring expenses—including certain transaction, tax, indemnification and legal costs—may be borne by the Trust. Investors who buy or sell through a broker may also pay customary commissions and charges, and the share price may differ from the Trust’s net asset value (NAV).
Who would hold the ZEC
Gemini Trust Company, LLC, an affiliate of the sponsor, is named as custodian. The filing says Gemini would safeguard the Trust’s private keys and hold ZEC in segregated cold-storage addresses, except when assets are needed temporarily for operational purposes.
Cypherpunk Technologies Inc. is identified as the Zcash Ecosystem Partner. The filing describes possible support that includes advisory work, protocol development and coinholder polling; it does not make that company the custodian.
Is WINK approved or trading?
No. The October 6, 2026 S-1 is preliminary, and it says the information is incomplete and may change. The filing does not establish that the registration statement has become effective, that Nasdaq listing conditions have been met, or that trading has started. Treat WINK as a proposed ticker until a later filing confirms the fund’s status.
Several material details are still blank in the version filed, including the benchmark provider and index, transfer agent, administrator, cash custodian, basket size, seed investor and seed-share details. Those terms could affect how the product operates; the preliminary document does not settle them.
What the filing says about risk
The S-1 warns that shares are speculative, may trade above or below NAV, and could lose their entire value. That warning is the issuer’s statement in its preliminary prospectus, not an SEC endorsement or an independent assessment by the SEC.
The filing also describes Zcash’s privacy features: shielded transactions use zk-SNARKs to protect transaction amounts, senders and recipients. It reports that a vulnerability in the Orchard shielded pool was identified in late May 2026 and addressed through an emergency network upgrade in early June. Developers reportedly found no evidence of exploitation, but the filing says the privacy-preserving system cannot conclusively determine whether exploitation occurred before remediation. That leaves uncertainty despite the reported fix.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →What the $100 million indication means
Winklevoss Capital Fund, LLC indicated nonbinding interest in buying up to $100 million of shares through affiliates. This is not a purchase commitment or a guarantee of demand: the filing says the purchaser could buy more, fewer or no shares.
Quick Recap
Best Value
What to check before investing
- Confirm whether a later SEC filing made the registration effective and whether Nasdaq has begun trading shares under WINK.
- Review any amended prospectus for final benchmark, service-provider, seed-share and basket details.
- Account for the 0.25% annual sponsor fee, possible extraordinary Trust expenses, brokerage charges and any premium or discount to NAV.
- Consider the disclosed risks of ZEC price volatility, fund structure and the unresolved uncertainty described around the Orchard vulnerability.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
