Best BTCI Alternatives in 2026

This category groups funds positioned as alternatives to BTCI, spanning Bitcoin futures exposure, crypto-linked option-income strategies, and covered-call structures on bitcoin or crypto equities. YieldMax is the most represented issuer in the top 10 here, with three funds (MSTY, CONY, YBIT) built around option-income strategies on crypto-related underlyings, while ProShares, Nicholas Wealth Management, Roundhill Investments, Simplify ETFs, and Amplify ETFs each contribute a single fund. AUM is heavily concentrated at the top, with BITO at $1.6B dwarfing the rest of the category, whose remaining seven funds range from $959M down to $13M.

• BITO is the largest fund shown by a wide margin at $1.6B in AUM, more than 60% larger than the next fund, MSTY at $959M.
• MSTY carries the highest yield among the funds shown here at 75.73%, followed closely by CONY at 74.61% and YBIT at 67.86%.
• BITY has the lowest expense ratio in this group at 0.65%, while MAXI has the highest at 1.31%.
• Weekly-distribution funds dominate the yield rankings, with BLOX (32.72%) and YBTC (29.59%) trailing the top three YieldMax weekly payers but still well above the monthly-pay funds BITO (1.21%), MAXI (4.11%), and BITY (23.84%).
• The category's 38.71% average yield is skewed upward by the option-income strategies, since BITO's futures-based approach yields just 1.21%.

Yields in this category are largely generated through options-based income strategies on volatile crypto assets, meaning distributions can fluctuate significantly and may include return of capital rather than pure income. Expense ratios across the group cluster between 0.65% and 1.31%, a relatively narrow band, but the tradeoff between yield level and underlying strategy risk varies considerably from fund to fund. Investors reviewing this category may want to consider how distribution frequency, strategy type (futures vs. options overlay), and issuer concentration among YieldMax funds could shape the risk and payout profile of each alternative relative to BTCI.

• Strategy mismatch: several funds on this list track a different index or use a different income mechanism than BTCI, so swapping into one changes the exposure — upside participation, payout cadence, and tax character can all shift, not just the ticker.
• Capped upside: covered-call and option-overlay funds in this group keep the option premium in a rally but surrender gains above the strike, so they can trail the very index they write options against.
• Distribution sustainability: the average distribution rate here is 38.7%, and payouts at that level often include return of capital — when distributions persistently exceed total return, NAV erodes and shrinks the base that generates future income.
• Single-name concentration: option-income funds built on one underlying stock inherit that company's full drawdown risk, and a sharp decline can overwhelm months of option premium.
• Concentration in one theme: most funds here focus on crypto, so the whole list tends to draw down together when that corner of the market falls out of favor — diversification across the table is lower than the fund count suggests.

• Universe: a hand-curated peer set, split into close peers (5 here — same core exposure and same income mechanism, so a like-for-like swap) and broader substitutes (a different index, underlying asset, or income mechanism). Every fund is labelled in the Strategy fit column; BTCI itself is excluded.
• Eligibility: active ETFs only — liquidated, delisted, and renamed funds drop out automatically. Leveraged and inverse products are never listed: a daily-reset 2x or -1x fund is not an alternative to a long income position.
• Ranking: assets under management, used only as a fund-size ranking. Never ranked by yield — yields are shown as data, not used to order the list.
• Fit: how each fund's strategy differs from BTCI — and who each one suits — is covered in the strategy notes and FAQ below.