The past 12 months have generally been a story of selling on Wall Street, with the Dow ( DJI ), S&P 500 ( SP500 ) and Nasdaq Composite ( COMP.IND ) losing significant ground in 2022. However, even in a year of dramatic retreats, some areas of the market presented especially dramatic declines. Of the entire ETF universe, encompassing more than 2,000 entries, the bottom 10 performing funds each lost more than 70% on the year. Among the names that struggled the most, crypto represented a key theme. This came as Bitcoin dropped 65% on the year. Along with crypto-themed funds, ETFs focused around Russia also suffered, with investors searching for other opportunities after the country invaded Ukraine, sparking a wave of sanctions. Here's a breakdown of the top ten worst 2022 ETF performers (excluding leveraged, and inverse funds): Bottom Ten ETF Performers: No. 10: AXS De-SPAC ETF ( DSPC ) -73.7% . No. 9: Global X Blockchain and Bitcoin Strategy ETF ( BITS ) -75.1% . No. 8: Defiance Digital Revolution ETF ( NFTZ ) -76.3% . No. 7: VanEck Russia ETF ( BATS: RSX ) -78.8% . No. 6: Invesco Alerian Galaxy Crypto Economy ETF ( SATO ) -79.7% . No. 5: First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry and Digital Economy ETF ( CRPT ) -80.8% . No. 4: iShares MSCI Russia ETF ( ERUS ) -81.2% . No. 3: Bitwise Crypto Industry Innovators ETF ( NYSEARCA: BITQ ) -83.7% . No. 2: VanEck Digital Transformation ETF ( DAPP ) -85.3% . No. 1: Viridi Bitcoin Miners ETF ( RIGZ ) -86.4% . Data is per ETF.com . Wednesday’s price action: DSPC +1.6% , NFTZ -0.1% , SATO -3.7% , CRPT -2.5% , BITQ -1.1% , DAPP -1.8% , and VOO -1.3% . RIGZ, the worst performing ETF on the year exploded higher by 133% in its four months of trading back in 2021 and now announced that it will be liquidated after 2022’s collapse.
