Bitwise Asset Management has expanded its ETF lineup with the launch of three single-stock option income strategy ETFs.
Each fund is designed to capitalize on volatility in the crypto market. Additionally each fund applies a synthetic covered call strategy to its target security.
The Bitwise MSTR Option Income Income Strategy ETF (IMST), the Bitwise COIN Option Income Strategy ETF (ICOI) and Bitwise MARA Option Income Strategy ETF (IMRA) listed on NYSE Arca today.
Strategy Behind the Bitwise Funds
Through daily active management each fund follows a unique strategy, selling call options on the stocks of MicroStrategy (MSTR), Coinbase (COIN), and MARA Holdings (MARA) respectively. At the same time, the funds maintain long exposure to the underlying stocks.
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The goal of these funds is to generate monthly income and provide limited participation in the stocks’ potential growth. The aim is to achieve this by selling call options and collecting premiums in return.
“The high volatility of stocks like MSTR, COIN, and MARA creates compelling opportunities to generate income,” said Jeff Park, Bitwise’s Head of Alpha Strategies. “But it’s essential to be constantly monitoring news, capital flows, regulatory developments, options pricing, market sentiment, and other dynamics to most intelligently capitalize on this strategy. That’s the approach we’re taking with IMST, ICOI, and IMRA, and we hope to bring investors the combination of monthly income and strong, limited participation in equity gains as a result.”
Bitwise emphasizes in the prospectus that investing in these funds does not equate to investing directly in the underlying securities. In other words, the funds do not hold shares of MSTR, COIN, or MARA.
Park will manage the funds alongside co-managers Jennifer Thornton, Daniela Padilla, and Gayatri Choudhury.
All three funds carry a 0.98% expense ratio. However, the gross expense ratio for ICOI and IMST is set at 0.99%, but a 0.01% waiver is in place for both funds until March 25, 2027.
These launches reflect Bitwise’s ongoing push into the crypto ETF space. The firm currently manages nearly $3.4 billion in ETF assets.
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