Binance rolls out BTC Yield, so HODLers can finally get paid to sit on their bags 📞

Binance has launched BTC Yield, a yield-generating product built exclusively for users who already hold bitcoin, the exchange said Monday. The offering, available inside Binance Earn, lets holders deposit BTC and receive an internal position called BTCY that tracks their share in the strategy. Deposits and redemptions are denominated in BTC, and the product cannot be funded with stablecoins or other assets. Bitcoin was trading at $63,929.59.

Under the hood, Binance holds the deposited bitcoin as collateral and systematically sells BTC call options, collecting premiums from buyers of those contracts. A portion of the premiums is converted to bitcoin and distributed to participants' spot accounts every Friday as a possible weekly payout, while the remainder is retained inside the strategy, gradually increasing the BTC value of each BTCY unit over time. When users redeem, they receive the higher BTC amount, producing a second source of return on top of the weekly distributions. Returns are not guaranteed and can be reduced if bitcoin's price rises sharply and the call options are exercised.

"Covered call strategies have long been used in traditional finance, but they can be complex for retail users to access directly," Shunyet Jan, head of exchange and trading at Binance, said in a statement. "With BTC Yield, we are simplifying that experience for Bitcoin holders who want income potential without actively trading the market."

The launch puts Binance in competition with traditional finance entrants pursuing similar strategies. BlackRock recently introduced a Bitcoin income ETF that also uses a covered-call overlay to generate additional returns for holders. Binance's version packages the same approach inside its retail-facing app, handling options execution, collateral management and premium distribution on behalf of users. Like any options-based product, BTC Yield carries the risk that upside in bitcoin's price is capped when call options are exercised.