The Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF gives U.S. investors direct exposure to Bitcoin through a publicly traded security. The product trades under the ticker BTC on NYSE Arca and holds Bitcoin rather than futures or other derivatives. Grayscale launched BTC in July 2024 as a lower-cost alternative to its longer-running Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF, or GBTC.
Overview
- Product name: Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF
- Ticker: BTC
- Launch date: July 31, 2024
- Exchange: NYSE Arca
- Sponsor: Grayscale Investments Sponsors, LLC
- Underlying asset: Bitcoin
- Structure: Delaware statutory trust
- Management fee: 0.15% annually
- Benchmark: CoinDesk Bitcoin Benchmark Rate
- Primary custodian: Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC
Fund Structure
BTC is designed to track the value of the Bitcoin held by the trust, less fees and other expenses. Unlike futures-based products, it owns Bitcoin directly and does not rely on futures contracts, swaps, or leverage to obtain its exposure.
Although the product uses “ETF” in its name, it is legally structured as a Delaware statutory trust and commodity-based exchange-traded product. It is not registered as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Its shares are registered under the Securities Act of 1933 and listed on NYSE Arca.
Launch and Relationship with GBTC
BTC began trading on July 31, 2024. The trust was seeded through a distribution from GBTC, which transferred 26,935.84 BTC, roughly 10% of its Bitcoin holdings at the time, into the new vehicle. Eligible GBTC shareholders received shares of BTC as part of the transaction.
The product launched as the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust (BTC) and was renamed the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF in November 2024. Its ticker remained unchanged.
Bitcoin Holdings, Benchmark, and Fees
The trust charges a 0.15% annual sponsor fee based on net asset value. Because the fee is satisfied from the trust’s assets, the amount of Bitcoin represented by each share declines gradually over time.
As of June 30, 2026, BTC reported approximately 54,280.4 BTC in holdings, $3.19 billion in net assets, and 122.75 million shares outstanding. These figures change with Bitcoin’s market price and with fund creations and redemptions.
On April 1, 2026, Grayscale replaced the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index with the CoinDesk Bitcoin Benchmark Rate as the trust’s pricing reference. The benchmark calculates a U.S. dollar reference price for Bitcoin using data from multiple eligible trading venues and is used in determining the trust’s daily net asset value.
Custody, Creations, and Redemptions
Coinbase Custody Trust Company serves as the trust’s primary Bitcoin custodian, while Coinbase provides prime brokerage services. Anchorage Digital Bank is also available as an additional custodian. The Bank of New York Mellon provides transfer-agent and administrative services.
Authorized participants can create and redeem shares in blocks of 10,000. The trust supports both cash and in-kind orders, allowing Bitcoin to be transferred directly in certain creations and redemptions. Retail investors generally access BTC by buying or selling shares on NYSE Arca through a brokerage account rather than transacting with the trust itself.
Tax Treatment and Risks
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, BTC is intended to be treated as a grantor trust. Shareholders are therefore generally treated as owning a proportional interest in the trust’s underlying Bitcoin.
The fund remains subject to the risks of its underlying asset, including Bitcoin price volatility, custody failures, cybersecurity incidents, regulatory changes, and market disruption. Shares can also trade above or below the value of the Bitcoin represented by each share. Investors do not control the private keys associated with the trust’s holdings, and BTC does not provide the protections available to funds registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940.
