UBS Ramped Up Bitcoin ETF Call Options 24-Fold as It Trimmed Downside Bets

UBS raised its Bitcoin ETF call options more than 24-fold

UBS Group AG, a Swiss bank managing over $7 trillion in assets, sharply increased its bullish exposure to a spot Bitcoin fund in the second quarter of 2026. The bank reported call options covering 1.95 million shares of BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) as of 30 June 2026. That marked a more than 24-fold rise from 80,000 underlying shares three months earlier. A call option gives the holder the right to buy shares later at a set price. UBS disclosed the positions in a Form 13F, a quarterly holdings report, filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on 13 August 2026.

The bank cut its put option exposure by half

UBS moved in the opposite direction on downside protection. It reported put options covering 143,300 IBIT shares as of 30 June, down about 53% from 303,300 at the end of March. A put option gives the holder the right to sell shares at a set price. Rising calls alongside falling puts tilted the bank's disclosed instrument mix toward upside exposure during the quarter. The filing does not state whether the trades reflect a directional view or another purpose.

Direct IBIT holdings rose about 12 percent

UBS also raised its direct IBIT share position, though far less dramatically than its options. The bank held 407,890 shares worth about $13.6 million as of 30 June 2026. That was up about 12% from 364,371 shares at the end of the first quarter. The direct stake still sat below the roughly 549,000 shares UBS held at the end of 2025. The bulk of the quarterly change came from the options lines, not the outright shares.

The reported figures reflect underlying market value

The Q2 filing assigned about $64.9 million of underlying market value to the call position and $4.8 million to the puts. It listed $13.6 million across the direct share rows. Under SEC rules, a Form 13F reports options using the underlying security's share count and quarter-end value. The form does not show the premium paid, the strike price, or a delta-adjusted measure of exposure. The $64.9 million figure therefore describes the value of the shares behind the calls, not the cash UBS committed to them. The gap between that call value and the $13.6 million in direct shares shows how much of the reported exposure sat in derivatives.

Bitcoin traded near $63,000 at the time of publication

Bitcoin traded near $63,000 at the time of publication, down about 3.3% over the past seven days (CoinPaprika, 16 August 2026). The token stood roughly 50% below its record high of about $126,173, set on 6 October 2025. IBIT tracks the price of Bitcoin, so the fund's share value moves with the token. UBS reported the value of its IBIT positions as of 30 June, so price moves after that date fall outside the filing.

The filing leaves the purpose of the positions unclear

The disclosure does not settle why UBS holds the positions. It omits strike prices, expiration dates, and any note on whether the trades reflect client mandates, dealer hedging, market-making, or proprietary bets. A Form 13F reports securities held under a manager's investment discretion, which can include client assets across affiliated units. The positions were dated 30 June, more than six weeks before the filing became public, so any later changes are not covered. A later quarterly filing will show whether UBS kept, added to, or unwound the positions.

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