BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, has filed a Form 8-A for its proposed bitcoin exchange-traded fund, signaling an imminent launch.
According to the official filing, BlackRock submitted the 8-A for the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF on Thursday. Form 8-A is a registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to register securities under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
"That typically means launch in one week," Bloomberg Analyst Eric Balchunas said. "So if I had to bet I'd say next [Thursday] BITA goes live. We'll see though."
The iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF offers spot bitcoin exposure with a yield-generating mechanism. It would actively sell call options primarily on IBIT, BlackRock's own spot bitcoin ETF and the largest fund of its kind.
The 8-A submission comes a few days after BlackRock filed its fourth amendment for the ETF, which established that the fund will have a 0.65% sponsor's fee, lower than competing covered-call bitcoin ETFs.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs is also working with the SEC to launch its own premium income bitcoin ETF, which was filed in April. Balchunas previously said Goldman Sachs' fund is expected to launch around July 1.