Goldman to buy NEOS for $2.25bn, scaling active ETFs to $80bn
Goldman Sachs will acquire NEOS Investments to create an $80 billion active ETF powerhouse and gain a foothold in crypto-yield products without holding the underlying digital assets.
Goldman Sachs agreed on Wednesday to acquire NEOS Investments for up to $2.25 billion, a move that will dramatically expand the bank's footprint in the options-income ETF sector. The transaction, structured through a mix of cash and equity, is contingent on specific performance and service milestones. Pending regulatory approval, the deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027.
The purchase will immediately reshape Goldman's ETF scale. NEOS manages roughly $30 billion across 19 ETFs that utilize options strategies to generate monthly income. When combined with Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s existing $40 billion in income-oriented, options-based funds, the bank's active ETF business will surge to about $80 billion.
According to Morningstar, that asset base will make Goldman the eighth-largest active ETF manager globally. It sits within a broader $130 billion ETF platform at the firm. CEO David Solomon characterized NEOS’s methodology as "highly complementary" to Goldman’s established buffer, managed-outcome and income capabilities.
NEOS co-founders Garrett Paolella and Troy Cates are set to join Goldman Sachs Asset Management as partners. They framed the transaction as a mechanism to pair NEOS’s "entrepreneurial spirit" with Goldman’s institutional scale. Their arrival follows the bank's earlier acquisition of Innovator Capital Management.
Together, these transactions complete a three-way combination specifically targeted at dominating the derivative-income and buffer or outcome strategy market. For Goldman, buying NEOS provides a ready-made infrastructure in a complex niche rather than building it organically from the ground up.
The deal also hands Goldman a unique foothold in the digital asset space at a time when institutional appetite for crypto-adjacent products is accelerating. However, market professionals should note the specific mechanics of the crypto funds being acquired, such as the Neos Bitcoin High Income ETF, Boosted Bitcoin High Income ETF, and Ethereum High Income ETF.
Per NEOS’s disclosures, these funds do not hold cryptocurrencies directly. Instead, they use derivatives to create crypto-linked exposure, with their high headline yields deriving primarily from selling options premium. Consequently, investor returns will be driven by options pricing dynamics rather than the spot price performance of Bitcoin or Ethereum itself.
