Grayscale files for bitcoin covered call ETF following conversion of GBTC

Grayscale Investments has filed for a so-called covered call ETF that seeks to generate income from a position in GBTC a day after securing approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission for its spot bitcoin ETF. 

"The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust Covered Call ETF seeks to provide and deliver current income while also providing participation in the price return of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust," according to a Form N-1A filed Thursday afternoon. 

The fund will not invest in digital assets directly, according to the filing.

"And so it begins…," Nate Geraci, president of The ETF Store, said in a post on X. "Actively managed exposure to GBTC & buys/sells call & put options that use GBTC as reference asset. Going to see all variations of spot bitcoin ETFs."

The new filing came just hours after Grayscale's spot bitcoin ETF, GBTC, began trading along with 10 other ETFs on Thursday morning. Trading volume for those products have totaled more than $4 billion as of this afternoon. 

Grayscale's ETF is leading the way with more than $1.9 billion in trading volume as of 3:02 p.m. ET, according to data from Yahoo Finance compiled by The Block. BlackRock and Fidelity's ETFs ranked second and third with $942 million and $628 million in trading, respectively. 

Analysts have noted that much of the GBTC volume could be outflows, as shareholders take profits or move to funds with lower fees. 

A historic move

The SEC approved 11 spot bitcoin ETFs on Wednesday, with SEC Chair Gary Gensler voting to greenlight the products. 

Following a decision made by three judges in a D.C. court over the summer which ruled that the SEC had to re-review a bid from Grayscale Investments for a spot bitcoin ETF, Gensler said it was time to move forward in a statement released on Wednesday. 

"Based on these circumstances and those discussed more fully in the approval order, I feel the most sustainable path forward is to approve the listing and trading of these spot bitcoin ETP shares," Gensler said in that statement.