Blackrock Files to Launch Bita – a Bitcoin Etf That Pays 8 to 12 Percent Annual Income
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Written by
Simonas Brazionis - Updated 2026-06-13 13:59:44
BlackRock filed a Form 8-A with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on June 11, 2026, registering the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF for listing on the Nasdaq under the ticker BITA. Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, who first flagged the filing, noted that a Form 8-A of this type typically precedes an ETF launch by roughly one week, putting his best estimate for BITA's trading debut at June 18 or 19. The fund is structured to hold Bitcoin and shares of BlackRock's existing spot Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, and generate monthly income for investors by selling covered call options on 25 to 35 percent of its holdings.
The mechanics are straightforward. BITA buys spot Bitcoin and IBIT shares as its core holdings, then each month writes call options on a portion of those holdings, collecting the option premiums and distributing them as regular income to fund shareholders. The covered call structure caps the fund's upside participation in Bitcoin rallies in exchange for steady yield. Analysts who have reviewed the fund's prospectus estimate the annual income generation at 8 to 12 percent, though actual distributions will fluctuate with volatility and Bitcoin's price level.
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How Bita Compares to Existing Bitcoin Etfs
BlackRock has set BITA's sponsor fee at 0.65 percent, a deliberate competitive positioning. The two largest existing covered-call Bitcoin funds charge 0.95 and 0.99 percent respectively. Grayscale's Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, ticker BPI, is set at 0.66 percent, making the fee race extremely tight at the top of the market. The fund launched with roughly $10 million in seed capital, holding approximately 110 BTC and 90,901 IBIT shares at inception. The scale of seed is modest by IBIT standards, but BlackRock's distribution network means inflows can accelerate rapidly once the fund goes live.
The strategic rationale is about opening Bitcoin exposure to a new category of investor. Pension funds, insurance companies, and income-oriented retail investors often cannot justify holding an asset that pays no yield. BITA changes that calculation. Investors who buy BITA effectively trade some of their Bitcoin upside for a monthly cash distribution, a product profile that has proven extremely popular with similar covered-call funds on equities.
The Race Against Goldman Sachs
BlackRock is not operating without competitive pressure. Goldman Sachs filed a preliminary prospectus for its own Bitcoin Premium Income ETF in April using a similar covered-call structure, with options written on 25 to 75 percent of the portfolio rather than BITA's 25 to 35 percent range. Goldman's fund is expected to go live around July 1. Balchunas described the dynamic as a race, writing online that BlackRock is clearly motivated to beat Goldman to first-mover advantage in the Bitcoin income ETF category. For investors tracking the best crypto exchanges and ETF products, the launch of BITA and its Goldman competitor represents a structural shift in how institutional capital engages with Bitcoin as it transitions from a pure price-exposure asset into a yield-generating instrument.
What to Watch
The key metrics to track after BITA launches are net inflow velocity in the first two weeks, how the fund's income distribution compares to initial projections, and whether the covered-call overlay meaningfully underperforms IBIT during strong Bitcoin rallies. The last point matters most to long-term holders: if Bitcoin stages a significant upside move, BITA shareholders will receive their monthly income but miss most of the price gains. That trade-off is acceptable for income-focused investors and entirely unacceptable for those seeking pure Bitcoin exposure. Watch whether the ETF industry's next move is a similar structure for Ethereum, Solana, or XRP as the income ETF model extends across the digital asset class.
