ETF Evaluator:
Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF (MAXI)
Follow This ETF
(as of Jul 31)
Best Performing in Digital Assets Over the Last Year
| 899.4% | Grayscale Zcash Trust (ZEC) () |
| 108.9% | ProShares UltraShort Bitcoin ETF (SBIT) |
| 14.8% | Simplify US Equity PLUS Bitcoin Stgy ETF (SPBC) |
| 6.7% | ProShares Short Ether ETF (SETH) |
| 5.6% | Nicholas Crypto Income ETF (BLOX) |
Risk
Index
Risk
Index
ETF Details
Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF Overview
Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF (MAXI) is an actively managed Miscellaneous Digital Assets exchange-traded fund (ETF). Simplify Asset Management launched the ETF in 2022.
The investment seeks income and capital appreciation.
The fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (an “ETF”). The fund’s adviser seeks to achieve its investment objective by using three strategies: (1) a Bitcoin strategy, (2) an income strategy, and (3) an option overlay strategy. Under normal market conditions, the adviser selects investments in Bitcoin related instruments so that the total value of economic Bitcoin exposure is approximately 50% to 200% of the net assets of the fund. It is non-diversified.
About Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF (MAXI)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 2.12 years: David Berns (2022), Emilio Freire (2024) and Jeffrey Schwarte (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100% and Nasdaq Bitcoin Reference Price PR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF has 9 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 442.8% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF is part of the Other global asset class and is within the Miscellaneous ETF group. Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF has 0.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.8% There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 360.9% (360.9% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF has -335.6% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $23 million in total assets, which is below the $522 million average for the Digital Assets category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
MAXI Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Digital Assets category. Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF has an expense ratio of 1.31%, which is 31% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a D. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 0%, which indicates that it holds its assets around /years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 85% for the Digital Assets category.
Recently, in the month of June 2026, Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF returned -19.9%, which earned it a grade of C, as the Digital Assets category had an average return of -18.3%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.
Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF has a trailing yield of 69.06%, which is above the 17.02% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income monthly and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Simplify Bitcoin Strategy ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned -39.9%, 7.5 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned -65.2% over the past year (grade of F) and 3.8% over the past three years (grade of C).
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MAXI Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 6/30/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| MAXI Return (NAV) | -19.9% | -10.4% | -65.2% | 3.8% | na | na |
| MAXI Return (Price) | -20.0% | -10.5% | -64.1% | 3.0% | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | 0.158% | 0.105% | -1.075% | 0.758% | na | na |
| Digital Assets Avg | -18.3% | -15.1% | -30.3% | 3.0% | -19.1% | 53.7% |
| MAXI Grade (NAV) | C | B | F | C | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | -1.5% | 4.7% | -34.8% | 0.8% | na | na |
| MAXI Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 10.1% | 11.1% | na | na |
MAXI Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 6/30/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| MAXI Return (NAV) | -39.9% | -27.0% | 90.5% | 143.5% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| MAXI Return (Price) | -40.0% | -29.2% | 93.3% | 145.8% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | 0.001% | 0.081% | 0.031% | 0.016% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Digital Assets Avg | -32.4% | -11.3% | 63.4% | 159.0% | -73.9% | 199.4% | 175.1% | 11.8% | -81.4% | 1391.4% | 119.9% |
| MAXI Grade (NAV) | C | D | B | B | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | -7.5% | -15.8% | 27.1% | -15.5% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | na |
| R-Squared: | na |
| Standard Deviation: | 61.2% |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.68 |
| Category Risk Rating: | Average |
| Total Risk Index: | 5.03 |
| Total Risk Rating: | High |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 69.1% |
| Total Assets: | $ 23 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 23 Mil |
| Turnover: | 0.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 1.31% |
| Index Fund: | No |
| Index Tracked: | S&P 500 (TR) (1970) |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | Annually |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Monthly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 3.8 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 2.1 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Berns David (2022), Freire Emilio (2024), Schwarte Jeffrey (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 9 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 442.8% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 0.0% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.8% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 360.9% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 73.9% |
| Cash: | -335.6% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | Simplify Asset Management |
| Phone Number: | 855-772-8488 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | September 29, 2022 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.31% (Rating: High) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.00% |
