Fee War Heats Up as BlackRock Nears Launch of Yield-Generating Bitcoin ETF

The iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF is designed to generate yield by selling call options against BlackRock’s own IBIT position.

BlackRock is nearing the launch of a Bitcoin income-focused ETF.

In its latest SEC filing on Tuesday, the world’s largest asset manager submitted a fourth amendment for the product, which is expected to list on Nasdaq under the ticker BITA.

The strategy is options-based. The fund will hold both Bitcoin and shares of IBIT, BlackRock’s $47 billion spot Bitcoin ETF, and will regularly write call options on those holdings to generate income.

A call option gives the buyer the right to purchase an asset at a set price. In exchange, the seller receives a premium, which becomes the income paid out to ETF investors.

While this structure generates steady yield, it also limits upside. If Bitcoin rallies strongly, gains on the covered portion are capped. The fund plans to sell calls on around 25% to 35% of its holdings at any given time.

BlackRock’s advantage is pricing. The sponsor fee is set at 0.65%, undercutting major covered-call Bitcoin ETFs such as YBTC and BTCI, which charge 0.95% and 0.99%, according to Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas.

Balchunas added that the fund could launch soon, noting BlackRock’s push to beat Goldman Sachs to market, with Goldman’s competing Bitcoin income product expected around July 1.

BlackRock already leads the spot Bitcoin ETF market through IBIT, which consistently attracts the largest inflows and often remains resilient even when competitors see outflows.

Together with Fidelity’s FBTC, IBIT has helped consolidate the U.S. Bitcoin ETF space into a two-player dominance structure, with smaller issuers contributing only marginal daily flows.

The new ETF marks another step toward packaging Bitcoin as an income-generating asset for mainstream investors. The filing indicates the fund is already seeded and has begun accumulating both Bitcoin and IBIT shares, signaling it is close to launch readiness.