BAMU vs VBIL

BAMUDBrookstone Ultra-Short Bond ETF

VBILAVanguard 0-3 Month Treasury Bill ETF

In short

BAMU Most of the T-bill aisle just holds bills and charges next to nothing. BAMU goes the other way: an active manager steering maturities inside a 0 to 2 year band off its own read on the yield curve, for 1.00% a year.

VBIL Vanguard's cash-parking ETF: roughly two dozen Treasury bills, none maturing more than three months out, at 0.06% a year. It landed in 2025 and undercut most of the T-bill shelf on price.

Stated mandate

BAMU The Fund seeks current income. It is actively managed and invests at least 80% of assets in U.S. Treasuries and investment-grade corporate bonds with maturities from 0 to 2 years, plus related fixed-income ETFs; it does not seek to replicate an index.

VBIL VBIL seeks to track the performance of a market-weighted Treasury index with an ultra-short-term dollar-weighted average maturity, using a passive approach designed to follow the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Bills 0-3 Months Index.

Why people hold it

• BAMU Does what the prospectus says: at least 80% in U.S. Treasuries and investment-grade corporates maturing inside two years. Portfolio and mandate line up closely.sec.gov
• The adviser dials duration to its near-term rate outlook and the shape of the yield curve, a lever the index bill funds in this category do not have.sec.gov
• Not just bills: an investment-grade corporate sleeve and fixed-income ETFs can add income potential beyond Treasuries alone. Income is paid quarterly.sec.gov

• VBIL It charges 0.06% a year, well under the 0.14% median for 0-1 year Treasury funds and under the category veteran, BIL.
• Plain passive mandate on the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Bills 0-3 Months Index, tracked very closely. One of the tightest implementations in its peer group.vanguard.com
• Roughly two dozen bills backed by the US Treasury, every one maturing inside three months. Interest goes out monthly.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund with active daily trading, which tends to keep bid-ask costs small.

Worth knowing

• BAMU The 1.00% fee is above the category median, and above ICSH at 0.08%, VUSB at 0.10% and VBIL at 0.06%. On a 0 to 2 year bond portfolio, fee eats a real slice of yield.
• Thinly traded next to the category's household names, so spreads can be wider and limit orders matter more.
• Credit and active risk ride along: corporates and ETF positions are not Treasuries, and the manager's curve calls can land either way.sec.gov

• VBIL The payout floats with short-term rates. Monthly income rises and falls with what bills yield, and nothing about it is fixed.
• It opened in 2025, so its live record is short next to T-bill funds that have been running for years.
• Stretching maturity gets cheaper: peer XONE targets one-year duration at 0.03%, trading lower cost for more rate sensitivity.

Full BAMU profile⁠

Full VBIL profile⁠