Vanguard Mocks Bitcoin as a ‘Digital Labubu’ Even as It Lets Clients Trade BTC ETFs
Vanguard allows Bitcoin ETF access but still rejects BTC as an investment, calling it a collectible with no cash flow.
Bitcoin’s latest pullback has reignited an old debate: can the world’s largest cryptocurrency ever earn full legitimacy if some of finance’s most powerful institutions refuse to believe in it? Few examples illustrate this tension more clearly than Vanguard’s latest remarks, which combine expanded access to crypto with outright skepticism about its value.
As Bitcoin slipped from recent highs and hovered near the $92,000 mark, concerns about volatility resurfaced across the market. The retreat itself was not unusual, but the timing was notable. It coincided with pointed criticism from Vanguard, the $12 trillion asset manager that has quietly become one of crypto’s most reluctant gatekeepers.
Speaking at Bloomberg’s ETFs in Depth event in New York, John Ameriks, Vanguard’s global head of quantitative equity, dismissed Bitcoin with an analogy that quickly spread across financial media. He described the asset as a “digital Labubu,” likening it to a viral collectible toy rather than a serious investment. The comparison was not accidental. Ameriks used it to restate Vanguard’s long-standing position that Bitcoin generates no income, no compounding, and no cash flow, placing it firmly outside the firm’s definition of a productive asset.
From Vanguard’s perspective, Bitcoin belongs in the same category as collectibles driven by scarcity narratives and speculative demand. Ameriks went further, arguing that the firm has yet to see convincing evidence that Bitcoin’s underlying technology delivers durable economic value. The tone echoed decades-old critiques that once compared speculative assets to Dutch tulips or Beanie Babies, reinforcing the idea that price appreciation alone does not constitute legitimacy.
What makes the remarks striking is the context in which they were delivered. Only weeks earlier, Vanguard had reversed years of resistance by allowing clients to trade spot Bitcoin ETFs and other crypto-linked funds on its brokerage platform. Under CEO Salim Ramji, a former BlackRock executive with experience in digital assets, the firm opened access to ETFs holding Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Solana, placing them alongside commodities like gold.
Ameriks acknowledged that the January 2024 launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs played a key role in the decision, helping to stabilize infrastructure and liquidity. Yet he was careful to draw a line between access and approval. Vanguard, he said, enables clients to buy these products but offers no guidance, no recommendations, and no endorsement. Investors are left to act entirely at their own discretion.
This approach exposes a paradox at the heart of crypto’s institutional adoption. Vanguard is willing to meet client demand and profit from trading activity, while simultaneously distancing itself from the asset’s narrative and long-term promise. The firm began offering crypto ETF access to its more than 50 million brokerage customers in early December, citing the resilience and liquidity of the ETF structure during periods of volatility. At the same time, it continues to refuse launching proprietary crypto products or integrating Bitcoin into its core investment philosophy.
The result is a carefully calibrated stance. Vanguard acknowledges that Bitcoin is too large to ignore, yet too controversial to endorse. For Bitcoin advocates, the “digital Labubu” label underscores the cultural divide that still separates crypto from traditional finance. For Vanguard, skepticism is a risk-management strategy, not an ideological crusade.
As crypto markets mature and ETF adoption accelerates, this uneasy coexistence may persist. Bitcoin has gained access to the financial system’s biggest platforms, but not its full confidence. Whether belief follows access remains one of the defining questions of the asset’s next chapter.
