Bitcoin covered-call ETFs can pay cash while your investment loses value. Compare BTCI, BITY, BAGY, YBTC, YBIT and BCCC by total return, payout schedule and the upside each strategy trades away.
BTCI · BITY · BAGY · YBTC · YBIT · BCCC. Reviewed October 12, 2026. Performance period: year ended September 30, 2026. Selected funds, not the entire market or a buy ranking. No affiliate links.
What happened to the same $10,000?
This comparison uses equal starting capital. Applying each issuer’s one-year NAV total return to $10,000 gives the values below. It assumes distributions were reinvested; it is not the value of shares plus an additional cash payout to add again.
The common measurement period matters: all six figures end on September 30, 2026. BCCC’s $7,799 was the highest ending value in this group for that year; it still represents a loss. One difficult year does not establish which strategy will perform best next year. These are fund-level NAV illustrations, not actual brokerage-account results.
September payments and annual fees
The cash column assumes 100 shares held through every relevant ex-date, with September payable dates and no reinvestment. Equal share counts cost different amounts across funds; this is a payment record, not a yield ranking. Weekly entries are added together. The total-return column covers a different period and already includes reinvested distributions.
| Fund | Payment cycle | September cash / 100 shares | 1-year NAV total return* | Annual expenses** |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BTCI | Monthly | $71.84 | -25.99% | 0.99% |
| BITY | Monthly | $56.76 | -36.16% | 0.65% |
| BAGY | Monthly | $64.00 | -39.09% | 0.65% |
| YBTC | Weekly | $37.89 | -33.40% | 0.95% |
| YBIT | Weekly | $103.73 | -26.31% | 1.02% |
| BCCC | Weekly | $30.04 | -22.01% | 0.75% |
*Year ending September 30, 2026, including reinvestment. **Published total/gross expense ratios checked October 11; the fee is reflected in fund performance, not another amount to subtract from the reported return. Personal taxes and trading costs are separate.
Where the cash comes from—and what you give up
A call buyer pays a premium for the right to buy an asset at a specified strike price. A covered-call seller receives that premium and gives up gains above the strike on the covered portion. The premium provides a limited cushion if the asset falls; it does not insure the principal. These ETFs implement different versions through ETPs, options or call spreads, so their outcomes will differ.
Illustration: $100 asset + $3 cash premium; call strike $110.
At expiry, before fees and taxes. Measured against the $100 asset cost, with premium held as cash. An illustration of one fully covered call—not a forecast or the exact strategy of every ETF here.
A distribution is not extra wealth created on payment day. All else equal, distributing cash reduces the fund’s NAV by that amount on the ex-distribution date. Compare the remaining investment plus cash—or a reinvested total-return series—not the payout alone.
The six funds do not sell the same trade-off
- BTCI — monthly income with an actively managed options overlay
- Bitcoin ETP exposure with actively managed calls on Bitcoin futures ETFs. The option reference asset matters: this is not simply holding bitcoin and collecting a dividend.
- BITY — a partial-call approach
- Amplify describes weekly calls on part of the portfolio, 5–10% out of the money, with a 24% annual option-premium target. That target is neither guaranteed cash nor investment return.
- BAGY — a larger income overlay
- Amplify describes calls across the portfolio, 5% out of the money. More extensive call selling gives away more potential upside; its premium target is not a promised return.
- YBTC — weekly synthetic covered calls
- Uses options to establish Bitcoin-ETF exposure and sells calls. Weekly payments may suit a cash-flow schedule, but do not make the capital safe.
- YBIT — weekly call-spread income
- The current issuer description uses call spreads on Bitcoin ETPs. This is why a generic “all covered calls are identical” label misses a useful distinction.
- BCCC — weekly partial covered calls
- A partial overlay on Bitcoin ETP exposure seeks income while retaining some growth participation. Bitcoin downside and options risks remain.
What about the big annual distribution percentages?
The latest displayed annualized distribution rates were BTCI 28.00%, BITY 24.61% and BAGY 33.02% (September 30); YBIT 40.55% (October 7); and BCCC 30.75% (October 9). YBTC’s live distribution-rate field was blank when checked, so we have not filled it with a third-party estimate. These snapshots have different dates and are not a same-date performance ranking.
An annualized distribution rate usually scales the latest payment against NAV. It answers “what if this payment continued?”—not “what did I earn over a year?” A distribution can include return of capital. A preliminary 19a notice is not the final tax classification, and the classification alone does not measure whether your investment gained or lost value.
Use the numbers for your own holding
For money you plan to spend each month, compare several months of payments and decide what you would do if they fell. For long-term accumulation, compare reinvested total returns with a spot Bitcoin fund over the same dates. Owning six Bitcoin-linked funds does not create six independent sources of risk.
Bitcoin itself does not pay a dividend. These funds create distributions through investment strategies around Bitcoin exposure. For the wider choices—including spot funds, futures, leverage and company shares—read our Bitcoin ETF structure and fee comparison.
Sources and reproducible calculation
Cash column: sum the issuer’s payable-date entries from September 1–30, 2026, then multiply by 100. No change in share count or reinvestment is assumed. The September per-share inputs are listed below so you can check the arithmetic.
- BTCI issuer history: 09-18 $0.718400.
- BITY issuer history: 09-30 $0.567600.
- BAGY issuer history: 09-30 $0.640000.
- YBTC issuer history: 09-03 $0.101896; 09-10 $0.069505; 09-17 $0.105551; 09-24 $0.101918.
- YBIT issuer history: 09-04 $0.262900; 09-11 $0.309600; 09-18 $0.272400; 09-25 $0.192400.
- BCCC issuer history: 09-03 $0.076000; 09-11 $0.077200; 09-17 $0.073800; 09-24 $0.073400.
Total-return chart: $10,000 × (1 + published one-year NAV total return). Use the issuers’ September 30 performance tables; YBTC uses its September fact sheet. Returns include fund expenses and assume reinvestment; they exclude your individual taxes and trading costs. The cash column and return chart show different periods and different reinvestment assumptions: do not add them together.
Educational comparison, not a personal investment recommendation. US-listed funds; access and tax treatment vary by jurisdiction. Payments and capital values can fall. Past returns do not predict future results. We will update dated figures when a new comparable reporting period is available.
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