- Pays: monthly — usually going ex-dividend around the third week of the month.
- First paid: October 2024, right after launch.
- What it is: NEOS's bitcoin income fund — it holds bitcoin exposure (via ETPs) and sells call options on it, converting bitcoin's famous volatility into monthly income.
- Payout level: the distribution rate has run far above ordinary income funds — often 25%+ — because bitcoin volatility makes options extremely valuable.
- Tax angle: like its siblings QQQI and SPYI, much of the payout is classified as return of capital — tax-deferred in taxable accounts.
BTCI targets high monthly income, not a fixed amount — payouts move with bitcoin's volatility and the fund's own price.
BTCI pays monthly. Each point below is one distribution since October 2024. The table further down totals each year — a short book so far, so treat patterns gently.
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Each point is one payment; the line ends at the most recent payout. The table below totals them by year.
| Recent Ex-Dividend Dates | Distribution / Share |
|---|
"Next expected" is estimated from BTCI's recent payment rhythm — the fund announces exact dates shortly before each payout, and the data feed can lag a few days. You must own shares before the ex-dividend date to receive that payout; the cash typically arrives days later.
A real total-return estimate, assuming every payout was reinvested — including what happened to the share price. Before taxes and fees. Past performance does not predict the future.
BTCI's checks are big because bitcoin's swings are big — option buyers pay fortunes for exposure to them, and BTCI passes those fees through monthly. But the fund keeps bitcoin's downside: when bitcoin falls, BTCI's share price falls with it, and no monthly check erases a 30% crypto drawdown. This is a bitcoin position with an income faucet attached, not a safe yield.
The redeeming design choice: BTCI uses the same tax-managed structure as QQQI and SPYI — much of the payout is classified as return of capital, deferring tax in taxable accounts. The mechanics (and how to tell tax-smart ROC from the destructive kind) are in Return of Capital & NAV Erosion.
| Year | Total Distributions / Share | Payments | Change vs Prior Year |
|---|
Data source: Yahoo Finance. Figures are per share; the current year may be partial and figures should be verified against official sources.
Calculated from complete calendar years in the data above. Past results don't guarantee future payments.
When Is BTCI's Next Ex-Dividend Date?
BTCI pays monthly, usually going ex-dividend around the third week. The exact date of each payout is announced by the fund only shortly beforehand, so no site can promise the next date — but the live schedule box above shows the most recent ex-dividend date and the expected window for the next one, computed from BTCI's actual payment rhythm. Remember: you must own shares before the ex-dividend date to receive that payout.
BTCI's Payment Record So Far
BTCI — the NEOS Bitcoin High Income ETF — arrived in October 2024 with a bold pitch: take the most volatile mainstream asset on earth and make it pay a monthly income. The chart above shows every distribution since launch. The amounts are large relative to the share price — that's bitcoin's volatility being harvested — and they move month to month with the crypto weather.
Where the Income Comes From
BTCI holds bitcoin exposure through exchange-traded products and sells call options against it. Option buyers pay richly for bitcoin's swings, and those premiums fund the monthly checks. It's the same machine as QQQI runs on the Nasdaq — pointed at an asset that moves three times as hard. More volatility in, more income out, more risk retained.
BTCI vs. BITO: Two Very Different Bitcoin Paychecks
BTCI is often compared with BITO, the bitcoin-futures ETF that also pays monthly — but they're built on entirely different plumbing. BTCI manufactures income by selling options, so it pays even when bitcoin goes sideways. BITO merely passes through futures gains when they exist — its 2026 payouts collapsed to nearly nothing when those gains dried up. If the monthly check is the point, the difference matters enormously.
Is BTCI's Payout Safe?
No high payout attached to bitcoin can be called safe — the share price carries crypto's full drama, and the distribution moves with volatility. What BTCI has going for it: a deliberate income design rather than an accidental one, the tax-managed ROC structure, and (so far) a steady monthly cadence. Judge it by total return in the backtest box above, and read the NEOS fund guide for how this family works.
Understand the Machinery First
Option income, return of capital, NAV pressure — the NEOS design in plain English before you buy the yield.
Read: What Are QYLD, QQQI & SPYI?