VanEck Merk Gold ETF

Conclusion Regarding the Effectiveness of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The Trust maintains disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in its Exchange Act reports is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to the principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Sponsor, who performs functions similar to those a principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Trust would perform if the Trust had officers, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Under the supervision and with the participation of the principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Sponsor, the Sponsor conducted an evaluation of the Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures, as defined under Exchange Act Rule 13a-15(e), as of January 31, 2026. Based on this evaluation, the principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Sponsor concluded that the Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of January 31, 2026.

Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

The Sponsor’s management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as defined under Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f). The Trust’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. Internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that:

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become ineffective because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

The Principal Executive Officer of the Sponsor assessed the effectiveness of the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting as of January 31, 2026. In making this assessment, he used the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) in Internal Control—Integrated Framework (2013). His assessment included an evaluation of the design of the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting and testing of the operational effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting. Based on his assessment and those criteria, the Principal Executive Officer of the Sponsor concluded that the Trust maintained effective internal control over financial reporting as of January 31, 2026.

Cohen & Company, Ltd., the independent registered public accounting firm that audited and reported on the financial statements as of and for the year ended January 31, 2026 included in this Form 10-K, as stated in their report which is included herein, and issued an attestation report on the effectiveness of the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting as of January 31, 2026.

March 27, 2026