BlackRock's income-paying bitcoin ETF nears launch at a fee that undercuts rivals

Markets Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email BlackRock's income-paying bitcoin ETF nears launch at a fee that undercuts rivals The iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF makes money by selling call options on BlackRock's own IBIT. By Shaurya Malwa Jun 11, 2026, 8:59 a.m. 2 min read Make preferred on What to know : BlackRock is preparing to launch the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, which will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker BITA and aims to provide investors with income from bitcoin exposure. The fund will generate income by holding bitcoin and shares of BlackRock’s IBIT ETF, then selling call options on 25% to 35% of its holdings each month, capping upside in exchange for steady premiums. BlackRock has set a 0.65% sponsor fee for BITA, undercutting rival covered-call bitcoin ETFs, and analysts expect the fund to launch soon as the firm races Goldman Sachs to market. BlackRock is close to launching a bitcoin fund that pays an income. The world's largest asset manager filed its fourth amendment for the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF on Tuesday, according to its SEC filing . The fund will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker BITA. The income comes from options. The fund holds bitcoin and shares of IBIT, BlackRock's $47 billion spot bitcoin ETF. Each month it sells call options on those IBIT shares. A call option gives the buyer the right to purchase the shares at a set price. The fund collects a fee, called a premium, for selling that right. That premium is the income it hands to investors. As such, selling calls caps how much the fund gains if bitcoin rallies hard. Investors take steady income in exchange for giving up part of a big move. The fund plans to write calls on 25% to 35% of its value at a time. The fee is the edge, however. BlackRock set the sponsor's fee at 0.65%, which sits below the two largest covered-call bitcoin funds, YBTC and BTCI, which charge 0.95% and 0.99%, Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas said in a post on X. BlackRock just filed a new (and probably final) amendment for their Bitcoin Premium Income ETF $BITA and WE HAVE A FEE: 65bps. Obv higher than $IBIT et al but lower than the two biggest ETFs in 'covered call' category which are 95bp and 99bp. My guess is this is going to launch… pic.twitter.com/KBwFrmkdbJ — Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) June 10, 2026 Balchunas added he expects the fund to launch very soon, noting BlackRock is under pressure to beat Goldman Sachs to market, with Goldman's own bitcoin fund due to go live around July 1. BlackRock already has the strongest distribution base in the spot bitcoin ETF market. Its iShares Bitcoin Trust, IBIT, has become the flagship product of the sector, regularly drawing the largest inflows and often absorbing capital even when rival funds see redemptions. IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC have increasingly turned the U.S. spot bitcoin ETF market into a two-firm race , with smaller issuers often contributing little to daily flows. The launch would be another step in turning bitcoin into an income product for mainstream investors. The filing shows the fund is already seeded and has started buying bitcoin and IBIT shares - a sign it is close to being ready. More For You Live updates: Bitcoin's price bounces ahead of the SpaceX IPO By Shaurya Malwa , Omkar Godbole 3 hours ago May CPI ran hot on energy and cooler underneath, lifting majors on Thursday, though ether and the large alts are still down 6% to 8% over seven days. Read full story Latest Crypto News Philippines' central bank says Binance and its local partner lack licenses to operate 11 minutes ago Singapore bank DBS to offer tokenized gold to retail customers 48 minutes ago Live updates: Bitcoin's price bounces ahead of the SpaceX IPO 3 hours ago It's not just bitcoin ETFs. Corporate BTC buying has dried up too 3 hours ago XRP holds above $1.10 as ETF inflows rise, but traders remain cautious 4 hours ago Bitcoin has reached a deep bear-market valuation zone. The hard part may come next. 4 hours ago Top Stories Privacy returns to focus as Ethereum developers explore new token standards 14 hours ago BlackRock and Fidelity are quietly turning bitcoin ETFs into a two-firm market 14 hours ago Mastercard prepares for a future where AI agents make payments 17 hours ago Prediction markets get first U.S. rule proposal as CFTC pursues contract reviews 19 hours ago Michael Saylor gets into public debate over claims that Strategy's latest share sale was dilutive 19 hours ago A 'Bitcoin DeFi' project just shut down with a brutal post-mortem: Users just didn't care 21 hours ago