A spot Bitcoin ETF is a fund that holds Bitcoin itself and whose shares trade on a stock exchange. ETF stands for exchange-traded fund. Three examples, with exchange codes IBIT (iShares), FBTC (Fidelity) and GBTC (Grayscale), held 1,138,067 Bitcoin together at the end of 2025. That is 5.7% of the roughly 19.9 million Bitcoin mined by then, a total taken from the Fidelity fund's annual report filed on 25 February 2026. At the end of 2023 only Grayscale's fund of the three held any, 619,526 Bitcoin.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the first spot Bitcoin listings on 10 January 2024. This post explains how the funds work. It then uses three of the 11 approved funds as examples. IBIT, the largest of the three by Bitcoin held, leads each comparison. Every total below covers these three only, not the whole market.
What is a spot Bitcoin ETF? A spot Bitcoin ETF is a stock-market fund whose assets are Bitcoin itself, held for the fund by a bank-like firm called a custodian. A futures ETF holds contracts on Bitcoin's future price instead. The SEC approved the first spot Bitcoin listings on 10 January 2024.
IBIT (iShares), FBTC (Fidelity) and GBTC (Grayscale), three examples from the 11 approved funds, held 1,138,067 Bitcoin on 31 December 2025.
In 2024 these three example funds together took in $27.7 billion net, which means money from new shares less money paid out on redeemed shares. Grayscale's fund alone paid out $21.5 billion net.
The iShares and Fidelity funds charge 0.25% of their assets a year, after waivers at the start. Grayscale's fund charges a standing 1.5%.
What is a spot Bitcoin ETF?
"Spot" means the asset itself, bought for delivery now. A spot Bitcoin ETF buys Bitcoin and keeps it. Each share is a slice of the fund's Bitcoin. Our guide to what an ETF is covers the basics.
A futures ETF works differently. A futures contract is an agreement to buy or sell at a set price on a future date. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lists Bitcoin futures. Spot Bitcoin does not trade there.
What did the SEC approve on 10 January 2024?
The SEC's order of 10 January 2024 approved rule changes that let three exchanges list shares of 11 Bitcoin trusts. The exchanges were NYSE Arca, Nasdaq and Cboe BZX, all US stock exchanges.
From 2018 to March 2023 the SEC had disapproved more than 20 such filings.
The order relies on the exchanges' surveillance-sharing agreement with the CME. A surveillance-sharing agreement lets two markets swap trading data to spot abuse. The order states that fraud or manipulation in spot Bitcoin prices would likely similarly affect CME futures prices, so CME surveillance can help detect it.
Trading began on 11 January 2024, according to the Fidelity and Grayscale annual reports.
How does a spot Bitcoin ETF work?
The sponsor runs the fund. The custodian holds the Bitcoin. The iShares and Grayscale annual reports both name Coinbase Custody Trust Company. Fidelity's fund uses Fidelity Digital Assets, N.A., an affiliate of its sponsor.
Authorized participants create and redeem shares. An authorized participant is a large financial firm approved to deal directly with the fund. The 11 proposals approved in January 2024 covered cash creation and redemption only.
The sponsor fee is the yearly charge, taken from the fund's assets. The iShares report says the fund sells Bitcoin to pay it, which lowers the Bitcoin behind each share. The table sets out the three funds.
Fund | Sponsor fee a year | Custodian | Bitcoin held, end 2024 | Bitcoin held, end 2025 | Net money in, 2024 ($ billion) | Net money in, 2025 ($ billion) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) | 0.25% | Coinbase Custody Trust Company | 551,918 | 770,792 | 37.3 | 24.9 |
Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) | 0.25% | Fidelity Digital Assets, N.A. | 201,556 | 201,684 | 11.9 | 0.4 |
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC) | 1.5% | Coinbase Custody Trust Company | 205,399 | 165,591 | −21.5 | −3.7 |
Year-end holdings and calendar-year net money in, from each fund's Form 10-K for 2025 and 2024. Net money in is shares issued less shares redeemed. Fees are the standing annual rates, from the 10-K filings and the iShares page. Source: iShares, Fidelity and Grayscale annual reports
Grayscale's fund cut its fee from 2.0% to 1.5% on 11 January 2024. Its annual report says the sponsor may waive all or part of the fee for stated periods but does not presently intend to.
Both newer sponsors charge 0.25% and waived fees at the start. iShares charged 0.12% on the first $5.0 billion for twelve months from 11 January 2024. Fidelity charged nothing until 31 July 2024.
How much Bitcoin do the three funds hold?
Chart 1 shows the Bitcoin each fund held at each year-end, in thousands. The iShares 2025 bar, 770.8 thousand, is 770,792 Bitcoin.
Source: iShares, Fidelity and Grayscale annual reports (Form 10-K filings)
In Chart 1 the iShares fund rises from none to 770,792 Bitcoin and the Fidelity fund from none to 201,684. Grayscale's falls from 619,526 to 165,591.
In 2024 Grayscale's fund lost 414,127 Bitcoin, or 66.8% of its holding. The three funds held 958,873 at the end of 2024.
How much money flowed in and out?
Net flow is money from shares issued less money paid out on shares redeemed, from each fund's annual report.
Source: iShares, Fidelity and Grayscale annual reports (Form 10-K filings)
In Chart 2 the iShares fund took in $37.3 billion in 2024 and $24.9 billion in 2025. The Fidelity fund took in $11.9 billion and $0.4 billion. Grayscale's fund paid out $21.5 billion and $3.7 billion.
The three took in $27.7 billion in 2024 and $21.6 billion in 2025. Over the two years the iShares and Fidelity funds together took in $74.4 billion net, while Grayscale's fund paid out $25.2 billion. Rounded yearly figures add to $74.5 billion.
Flows can reverse. The iShares fund took in $1.11 billion net in the first quarter of 2026, then paid out $2.95 billion net in the second. That is $1.84 billion net out for the six months to 30 June 2026.
What are the risks of a spot Bitcoin ETF?
The price is the first risk. A share tracks Bitcoin, so a fall in Bitcoin is a fall in the share.
Chart 3 plots the daily closing price of Bitcoin in US dollars, from 10 January 2024, the day of the order, to 26 October 2026.
Source: YX Insights price data
Bitcoin closed at $46,666 on 10 January 2024. The lowest close in that window was $39,531 on 22 January 2024, 15.3% under the 10 January close.
The highest close was $124,720 on 6 October 2025. The last close, on 26 October 2026 (the last date in our price data), was $80,011. That is 35.8% below the high and 71.5% above the close on 10 January 2024.
Net assets are what the fund owns minus what it owes. The iShares fund's net assets fell 35.6% in six months, from $67.4 billion on 31 December 2025 to $43.4 billion on 30 June 2026. Bitcoin's close fell 33.1% over the same dates, from $87,511 to $58,532.
The iShares page showed $66.0 billion on 28 October 2026. Bitcoin's close rose 36.7% from 30 June to 26 October. The fund's shares outstanding rose 10.8%, from 1,296.04 million to 1,436.24 million.
The fee is the second risk. It comes out of the Bitcoin held.
The third is the structure. The iShares page states that the fund is not registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, the law that governs mutual funds. Two of the three name the same custodian.
What does it add up to?
For the coin itself, see our guide to what Bitcoin is.
A spot Bitcoin ETF is a stock-market fund that holds Bitcoin. IBIT, the largest of the three examples, held 770,792 Bitcoin at the end of 2025. The three together held 5.7% of all Bitcoin mined.
Money came in at IBIT and FBTC. It went out of GBTC.
Where do the figures come from?
Filing figures come from each fund's annual report to the SEC, the Form 10-K for 2025 or 2024. The iShares six-month figures come from its quarterly report, the Form 10-Q. Its fee and October net assets come from its own page. The order and the SEC chair's statement come from sec.gov.
This post uses three of the 11 funds in the order as examples. It uses year-end figures. Flows are dollar amounts at the time of each transaction. The post makes no forecast.
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Common questions about spot Bitcoin ETFs
When were spot Bitcoin ETFs approved?
The SEC approved the first spot Bitcoin ETFs on 10 January 2024. Its order covered rule changes from three exchanges, NYSE Arca, Nasdaq and Cboe BZX, to list 11 Bitcoin trusts. Trading began on 11 January 2024. The SEC had disapproved more than 20 earlier filings between 2018 and March 2023.
What is the difference between a spot Bitcoin ETF and a futures ETF?
A spot Bitcoin ETF holds Bitcoin itself, while a futures ETF holds futures contracts. A futures contract is an agreement to buy or sell at a set price on a future date. The SEC order of 10 January 2024 covered funds that hold spot Bitcoin. Spot Bitcoin does not trade on the CME, which lists the futures.
How much does a spot Bitcoin ETF charge?
Fees run from 0.25% to 1.5% of assets a year across the three example funds. The iShares and Fidelity funds charge 0.25%. Grayscale's fund charges a standing 1.5%, after a cut from 2.0% on 11 January 2024. The sponsor fee is the yearly charge, taken from the fund's assets. Both newer sponsors charge 0.25% and waived fees at the start.
Does a spot Bitcoin ETF pay dividends?
No. The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF lists its distribution frequency as none on its own page. A dividend is a payment from a company's profit to its shareholders. A spot Bitcoin fund holds one asset, so its return comes from the change in the Bitcoin price, less the sponsor fee.
Where do spot Bitcoin ETFs keep their Bitcoin?
A custodian holds it. The iShares and Grayscale funds name Coinbase Custody Trust Company as custodian in their annual reports. The Fidelity fund uses Fidelity Digital Assets, N.A., an affiliate of its sponsor. Each share is a slice of the trust's net assets.
DISCLAIMER: This article is intended for educational purposes only. Any information or analysis in this note does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. Nothing in this note is intended to be investment advice, nor should it be relied upon to make investment decisions. Any opinions, analyses, or probabilities expressed in this note are those of the author as of the note's date of publication and are subject to change without notice.
