Strive and Tuttle Capital File for First ETF Backed by Bitcoin Treasury Preferred Shares With Double-Digit Yields

Photo: AI Generated / TheMarketContext.com

A new SEC filing is pushing the boundaries of how investors can access Bitcoin exposure without ever owning the cryptocurrency itself. On March 30, ETF Opportunities Trust filed a 485A prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the T-Strive Digital Credit ETF, ticker DGCR — a fund that would invest not in Bitcoin directly, but in preferred shares issued by companies that hold Bitcoin on their balance sheets.

The filing represents the next layer in Bitcoin’s rapidly evolving investment ecosystem: income-generating exposure to corporate Bitcoin treasuries through their preferred stock dividends, rather than through price appreciation of Bitcoin itself.

How DGCR Would Work

The fund would be managed by Tuttle Capital Management with Strive Asset Management serving as sub-adviser. Strive, founded by former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, has positioned itself as a major player in the Bitcoin treasury space, accumulating 13,627 BTC on its own balance sheet as of mid-March.

Under normal market conditions, DGCR would invest primarily in two preferred equity securities: Strategy Inc.’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock (STRC), which currently pays an 11.5% annualized dividend, and Strive Inc.’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock (SATA), paying 12.75% annualized. Both distribute monthly.

A preferred stock is a type of equity that sits between bonds and common stock in a company’s capital structure — preferred shareholders receive fixed or variable dividend payments before common shareholders, but typically do not have voting rights. In this case, the dividends flow from companies whose treasuries are backed substantially by Bitcoin holdings.

The fund is classified as non-diversified under the Investment Company Act of 1940, meaning it can hold concentrated positions in a small number of securities. It may also use derivatives and leverage — essentially borrowing money to increase investment exposure — to amplify income.

The Bitcoin Treasury Boom

The filing arrives at a moment when corporate Bitcoin treasuries have become a significant market force. Public companies now collectively hold over 1.1 million BTC, a 17.1% increase from approximately 967,000 BTC in September 2025, according to BitcoinTreasuries.net data.

Strategy Inc. dominates this landscape. The company holds 762,099 BTC purchased for an aggregate $57.69 billion at an average cost of $75,694 per coin — representing roughly 3.6% of Bitcoin’s entire circulating supply. That makes Strategy the world’s largest public corporate Bitcoin holder by a wide margin, controlling approximately 76% of all publicly held corporate Bitcoin.

Matt Cole, Strive’s CEO, has framed the opportunity in ambitious terms. “We believe Digital Credit could be a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity,” Cole said, “and every single update today aims to improve the credit quality and lower the expected volatility profile of our Digital Credit product.”

Risk Meets Yield

But the structure carries meaningful risk. The fund’s non-diversified status means a significant decline in either Strategy Inc. or Strive Inc.’s preferred stock could disproportionately affect the entire ETF. The use of leverage amplifies both gains and losses.

The broader market has taken note of leverage risks in Bitcoin-adjacent products. Robbie Mitchnick, BlackRock’s head of digital assets, warned in February that Bitcoin trading “increasingly resembles a levered NASDAQ,” cautioning that heavy derivatives use is undermining cryptocurrency’s appeal as a stable institutional portfolio hedge.

The registration statement has been filed but is not yet effective — meaning DGCR cannot be offered or sold to investors until the SEC completes its review.

What to Watch

ISM Manufacturing Index: The Institute for Supply Management releases its March manufacturing report on Wednesday, April 1 — a key gauge of factory activity that markets watch closely for signs of economic expansion or contraction.

Earnings: McCormick & Co. (MKC) reports Tuesday before the bell, with analysts estimating $0.60 per share on revenue of $1.79 billion. Tuesday is one of the busiest earnings days of Q1 with 142 companies scheduled to report.

Bitcoin ETF Flows: Bitcoin ETFs recorded approximately $12.5 billion in net inflows during March, reversing four consecutive months of outflows. The trend signals renewed institutional demand heading into Q2.