Strive Says 'No Thanks' to Direct Bitcoin—New DGCR ETF Wants Yield Instead

The HODL narrative just got a little more complicated. Strive, the 10th-ranked public Bitcoin treasury company, is branching out with a fresh approach to ETFs—minus the actual Bitcoin buying. Because nothing says "we believe in the future of crypto" like an ETF that doesn't actually hold any.

In partnership with Tuttle Capital Management, Strive filed for the T-Strive Digital Credit (DGCR) ETF with the SEC on March 30. Rather than going the traditional ETF route and buying Bitcoin directly, the firm plans to invest in companies holding substantial Bitcoin reserves—specifically Strategy's Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Stretch Preferred Stock (STRC) and Strive's own Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock (SATA). It's essentially a fund of funds, but for people who think holding the actual coin is too mainstream.

These preferred stocks pay regular income to investors, essentially letting Strive chase yield without touching the orange coin itself. It's a clear departure from the classic HODL strategy. Call it the "HODLer's dividend" approach—collecting checks while pretending Bitcoin doesn't exist.

But here's the catch: if those perpetual stocks take a hit, so does the ETF. The DGCR's performance is tightly linked to how STRC and SATA perform—not Bitcoin's price action. So when Bitcoin moons, this ETF will be in the corner eating rice cakes. Conversely, when BTC dumps, well, at least they can blame the preferred stocks instead of directly feeling the pain