BITO Weekly Cashflow: Covered Calls and Cash-Secured Puts Strategy

Introduction: Systematic Weekly Income from BITO

Generating consistent weekly cashflow from options doesn't require perfect market timing or complex strategies. The combination of covered calls and cash-secured puts on a single underlying creates a systematic income machine that works in any market environment. When executed methodically with proper position tracking, this approach delivers predictable premium collection week after week.

BITO (ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF) serves as an ideal vehicle for this strategy. The ETF offers liquid options markets with weekly expirations, moderate volatility that generates meaningful premiums, and the added benefit of substantial monthly dividends when trading with real capital. The combination of option premium and dividend income creates multiple income streams from a single position.

This article walks through a complete weekly cycle: tracking previous week's assignments, logging transactions in MyATMM, analyzing current positions, and setting up new covered calls and cash-secured puts for the coming week. The systematic approach removes guesswork and creates a repeatable process for consistent income generation.

Core Strategy: Combine covered calls on owned shares with cash-secured puts on the same underlying. As puts get assigned, shares accumulate. As share count grows, covered call premium increases. The cycle builds on itself, creating expanding weekly cashflow that compounds over time.

The Weekly Workflow: Review, Track, Execute

Successful weekly income generation requires systematic execution. Each week follows the same basic workflow, creating consistency and reducing decision fatigue.

Step 1: Review Previous Week's Activity

Begin by checking your brokerage platform to see what transpired during the previous week. Specifically, look for:

  • Assignments: Did any cash-secured puts get assigned, resulting in share purchases?
  • Expirations: Did covered calls expire worthless, freeing shares to sell new calls?
  • Open Positions: What positions remain active and when do they expire?
  • Extrinsic Value: For positions still open, how much time value remains?

This review provides the foundation for all subsequent decisions. You need to know exactly where you stand before planning the next week's trades.

Step 2: Log Transactions in MyATMM

Every transaction must be logged for accurate cost basis tracking. The MyATMM platform provides a structured workflow for this:

  1. Navigate to the cost basis page for your ticker (BITO in this case)
  2. Add new draft positions for any options sold the previous week
  3. Move those positions to the permanent transaction history with correct premium, commission, and fee data
  4. Process any assignments by converting puts to stock purchases
  5. Verify that your position count, cost basis, and account balance all match your brokerage statements

This logging step is non-negotiable. Without accurate transaction records, you cannot know your true cost basis, making all future trading decisions less informed.

Step 3: Analyze Current Position Status

With transactions logged, review your overall position metrics:

  • Share Count: How many shares do you currently own?
  • Total Capital Invested: What's the sum of all share purchases?
  • Current Market Value: What are those shares worth at current price?
  • Unrealized Gain/Loss: The difference between market value and capital invested
  • Total Premium Collected: Sum of all option income over the life of the position
  • Cost Basis (Simple): Average purchase price per share
  • Cost Basis (Premium-Adjusted): Average cost after accounting for all premium collected

These metrics tell you whether your strategy is working and inform decisions about strike selection for new positions.

Step 4: Set Up New Positions

Based on your current status and market conditions, establish new covered calls and/or cash-secured puts for the upcoming week:

  • Determine appropriate strike prices based on cost basis and current stock price
  • Check premium available at those strikes for various expirations
  • Place limit orders at the mid-point between bid and ask
  • Queue orders for market open the next trading day

The goal is maintaining consistent income generation week after week through systematic position establishment.

Weekly Workflow Summary: Review what happened, log every transaction accurately, analyze where you stand, and set up next week's income-generating positions. This four-step process takes 10-15 minutes and creates the foundation for consistent weekly cashflow.

Real Week Example: BITO Position Management

Let's walk through an actual week's activity on a BITO position to see the workflow in practice.

Previous Week's Setup

The prior week, the following positions were established:

  • Cash-Secured Put: 1 contract, $19.50 strike, expiring August 16th, $0.65 premium received
  • Covered Calls: 10 contracts, $25 strike, expiring August 23rd, $0.05 premium received per share

The cash-secured put required $1,950 in buying power. The covered calls covered 1,000 shares already owned. Total premium collected: $65 (put) + $50 (calls) = $115 for the week.

Friday Expiration: What Happened

On Friday, August 16th, the cash-secured put expired. BITO's closing price: $19.30. The put was assigned because the stock traded below the $19.50 strike.

Event Details
Assignment Required to purchase 100 shares at $19.50
Share Purchase Cost $1,950
Premium Collected $65 (reduces effective cost)
Net Cost Per Share $18.85 ($19.50 - $0.65)
New Total Shares 1,100 (was 1,000)

The covered calls remained open since they didn't expire until the following Friday. With 1.5 cents of extrinsic value remaining and the stock trading at $19.30 well below the $25 strike, those calls will almost certainly expire worthless.

Transaction Logging in MyATMM

With the week's activity complete, every transaction gets logged:

Logging the Cash-Secured Put

Transaction Date: August 12th (trade date)

Type: Sell to Open, Put

Contracts: 1

Strike: $19.50

Expiration: August 16th

Premium Received: $65.00

Commission: $0.65

Fees: $0.02

Net Credit: $64.33

Logging the Assignment

Assignment Date: August 17th (settlement date)

Type: Stock Purchase (from put assignment)

Shares: 100

Price Per Share: $19.50

Total Cost: $1,950.00

Commission: $0.00

Fees: $0.00

Logging the Covered Calls

Transaction Date: August 12th

Type: Sell to Open, Call

Contracts: 10

Strike: $25.00

Expiration: August 23rd

Premium Received: $50.00 ($0.05 × 1,000 shares)

Commission: $6.50

Fees: $0.07

Net Credit: $43.43

Updated Position Status

After logging all transactions, MyATMM displays the updated position summary:

Metric Value
Total Shares Owned 1,100
Total Capital Invested $28,900
Current Stock Price $19.45
Current Position Value $21,395
Unrealized Loss -$7,505
Total Premium Collected (All Time) $2,959
Cost Basis (Simple DCA) $26.27
Cost Basis (Premium-Adjusted) $23.58

The premium-adjusted cost basis of $23.58 represents the true breakeven point. While the position shows a $7,505 unrealized loss on paper, the nearly $3,000 in collected premiums reduces the actual loss significantly. The position needs BITO to reach $23.58 (not $26.27) to break even.

Setting Up the Next Week

With the position status clear, it's time to establish new income-generating positions. The covered calls at $25 still have a week until expiration, so those remain untouched. Focus shifts to selling a new cash-secured put.

Current BITO price: $19.45. Looking at the at-the-money range:

  • $19 strike (5 days): $0.37 bid, $0.41 ask, $0.39 mid-point
  • $19 strike (12 days): $0.57 mid-point
  • $19 strike (19 days): $0.93 mid-point

The at-the-money $19 strike offers $0.39 for the upcoming weekly expiration. This premium represents 2% return on the $1,900 of buying power required, or approximately 52% annualized. The decision: sell one contract of the $19 put expiring in 5 days for $0.39 premium.

The order is placed at the mid-point and queued for market open Monday morning. If BITO stays above $19, the put expires worthless and the premium is kept. If BITO drops below $19, assignment occurs and 100 more shares get added to the position, further increasing future covered call capacity.

Weekly Cycle Complete: Reviewed last week's activity (put assigned, calls still open), logged all transactions accurately, analyzed updated position status, and established a new cash-secured put for next week's income. The systematic approach ensures nothing falls through the cracks and every transaction contributes to the overall strategy.

Why BITO Works for This Strategy

Not every underlying makes a good candidate for systematic weekly covered call and cash-secured put strategies. BITO offers several characteristics that make it particularly well-suited for income generation.

Liquid Weekly Options

BITO has active weekly option expirations with tight bid-ask spreads. This liquidity ensures you can enter and exit positions efficiently without paying excessive spreads. The ability to sell new options every single week creates 52 income opportunities per year instead of just 12 monthly expirations.

Moderate Volatility

Bitcoin-related instruments carry higher volatility than most traditional stocks, but lower volatility than direct cryptocurrency exposure. This middle ground generates meaningful option premiums without excessive assignment risk. The $0.39 premium for a 5-day at-the-money put represents substantial income for short-duration exposure.

Dividend Income

BITO pays monthly dividends that can be substantial—recent payouts have reached $1.45+ per share. When trading with real capital (not paper trading), these dividends add a secondary income stream on top of option premium. The combination of weekly option income and monthly dividend income creates consistent positive cashflow.

No Earnings Announcements

As an ETF tracking Bitcoin futures, BITO has no quarterly earnings reports that can cause gap moves. This removes a significant risk factor present when selling options on individual stocks. You don't need to worry about avoiding earnings weeks or getting caught in earnings-driven volatility spikes.

Sufficient Price Level

Trading in the $19-$26 range, BITO offers a reasonable price level for option strategies. Strikes are available in $0.50 or $1.00 increments, providing good granularity for strike selection. The price level supports meaningful premium collection without requiring enormous capital allocation per contract.

Assignment is Acceptable

For wheel strategy implementation, BITO assignments work favorably. The underlying is an established ETF tracking a recognizable asset class. Accumulating shares through put assignments builds a position that can generate covered call income indefinitely. Unlike troubled individual companies, there's no bankruptcy risk or fundamental deterioration to worry about.

BITO Advantages Summary: Weekly option liquidity creates 52 income opportunities annually. Moderate volatility generates meaningful premiums without excessive risk. Monthly dividends add secondary income. No earnings announcements remove a major risk factor. Reasonable price level supports systematic strategy execution with manageable capital requirements.

Position Sizing and Capital Management

Proper position sizing ensures the strategy generates meaningful income without creating excessive concentration risk or capital strain.

Starting Position Size

Begin with a position size that represents 5-10% of your trading portfolio. If you have $50,000 allocated to options trading, a $2,500-$5,000 BITO position provides meaningful exposure without excessive concentration. This translates to roughly 100-250 shares at current price levels.

Starting smaller allows you to learn the workflow and build confidence before scaling up. The systematic nature of the strategy means you can gradually increase position size as shares accumulate through put assignments.

Growth Through Assignments

Rather than buying a full position upfront, let put assignments build your share count over time. Each assignment adds 100 shares, gradually expanding your covered call capacity. This organic growth approach means you're continuously averaging into the position at different price points, creating natural dollar cost averaging.

In the example position, the trader had accumulated 1,100 shares over multiple assignments. This happened systematically—not through one large purchase. Each assignment represented a conscious decision to accept shares at a specific strike price where premium collection made the trade attractive.

Covered Call Contract Count

The number of covered call contracts you can sell equals your share count divided by 100. With 1,100 shares, you can sell up to 11 contracts. Most traders prefer round numbers, so selling 10 contracts and leaving 100 shares uncovered provides flexibility.

This flexibility allows you to potentially sell those remaining 100 shares outright if the stock rallies significantly, or to sell an additional call at a different strike or expiration to test timing strategies.

Cash-Secured Put Sizing

Each cash-secured put requires buying power equal to the strike price times 100. A $19 put requires $1,900 in available capital. Most traders sell 1-3 put contracts at a time, creating opportunities for 100-300 additional shares if assigned.

Selling more puts than your capital can support is dangerous. Always ensure you have sufficient buying power to handle assignment on every put you sell. This conservative approach prevents forced liquidations or margin calls if multiple puts get assigned simultaneously.

Balancing Calls and Puts

The ideal ratio between covered calls and cash-secured puts depends on your current position and market outlook:

  • Accumulation Phase: When building a position, emphasize cash-secured puts to grow share count
  • Mature Position: Once at target share count, focus on covered calls for consistent income without further capital deployment
  • Neutral Phase: Balanced approach with both puts and calls, allowing position size to grow moderately while generating income from both sides

The example position demonstrates the balanced approach: 10 covered call contracts on existing shares, 1 cash-secured put to potentially add 100 more shares. This balance generates income from current holdings while leaving room for measured growth.

Sizing Principles: Start with 5-10% of portfolio value. Let put assignments build your position organically. Sell covered calls on most but not all shares for flexibility. Size cash-secured puts based on available buying power. Balance calls and puts based on whether you're accumulating shares or focused purely on income generation.

MyATMM: The Essential Tracking Infrastructure

Executing this strategy without accurate tracking is like flying blind. MyATMM provides the infrastructure needed to manage weekly positions systematically.

Transaction History Logging

Every option sold and every assignment executed gets logged in chronological order. This permanent record shows exactly when each transaction occurred, how much premium was collected, and what fees were paid. The transaction history becomes your audit trail, proving every income event over the life of the position.

Cost Basis Calculation

The platform automatically calculates both simple cost basis (average purchase price) and premium-adjusted cost basis (average cost after premium collection). These two numbers tell very different stories about your position.

In the example, the simple cost basis was $26.27 but premium-adjusted cost basis was $23.58. That $2.69 difference represents the cumulative effect of $2,959 in collected premiums. Knowing your true breakeven point (premium-adjusted) rather than just your purchase price average (simple) enables better decision-making about strike selection and position management.

Active Position Tracking

The platform displays all currently open options with days to expiration, strike prices, and premium collected when opened. This visibility ensures you never forget about a position or miss an expiration. For traders managing multiple underlyings with multiple expirations, this consolidated view prevents expensive mistakes.

Premium Collection Reporting

MyATMM tracks total premium collected across all time, by month, and by year. This reporting shows strategy effectiveness and helps set realistic income targets. Seeing that you've collected $2,959 in premium on BITO over several months demonstrates the power of consistent weekly execution.

Account Reconciliation

The dashboard displays your brokerage account balance alongside the calculated balance from tracked transactions. These should match exactly. In the example, both showed $75,274, confirming that every transaction had been properly logged with no missing data.

This reconciliation feature catches errors immediately. If the balances don't match, you know a transaction was missed or entered incorrectly, and you can fix it before the discrepancy compounds.

Proposed Cost Basis

When you have open cash-secured puts, MyATMM calculates proposed cost basis—what your cost basis would become if those puts are assigned. This forward-looking metric helps you evaluate whether accepting assignment at that strike makes sense given your overall position goals.

Platform Value: MyATMM transforms chaotic option trading into organized strategy execution. Transaction logging creates audit trails. Cost basis calculations show true breakeven points. Active position tracking prevents forgotten expirations. Premium reporting demonstrates strategy effectiveness. Account reconciliation catches errors immediately. These features together make systematic weekly income generation practical and sustainable.

Conclusion: Building Weekly Cashflow Systems

Consistent weekly income from options doesn't require market timing genius or complex multi-leg strategies. The combination of covered calls and cash-secured puts on a single underlying, executed systematically week after week, creates reliable cashflow that compounds over time.

The key to success lies in the systematic approach: review what happened last week, log every transaction accurately, analyze current position status, and set up next week's income opportunities. This four-step workflow takes 10-15 minutes per week and ensures nothing falls through the cracks.

BITO exemplifies the ideal underlying for this strategy. Weekly option liquidity, moderate volatility, monthly dividends, and no earnings announcements create an environment where systematic option selling thrives. The $100+ in weekly premium from the example position demonstrates that meaningful income is achievable without enormous capital or complex tactics.

Position growth happens organically through put assignments. Rather than deploying large capital upfront, let the strategy build your share count gradually. Each assignment represents a conscious decision to accept shares at an attractive strike where premium collection justifies the purchase. Over time, this builds substantial positions that generate expanding covered call income.

MyATMM provides the essential infrastructure that makes this strategy practical. Without accurate transaction logging and cost basis tracking, you're guessing at your true position status. With systematic tracking, you know exactly where you stand, enabling confident decision-making week after week.

The strategy compounds in multiple ways: premium collection reduces cost basis, creating safer strikes for future calls; share accumulation through assignments increases covered call contract count; growing positions generate larger absolute premium even at the same percentage rates. This compounding effect means year two generates more income than year one with the same effort.

Start small, execute systematically, track obsessively. The weekly cashflow builds gradually but reliably, creating income streams that persist across market environments and compound over time into substantial annual returns.

Risk Disclaimer

Options trading involves significant risk and is not suitable for all investors. Selling cash-secured puts obligates you to purchase shares at the strike price if assigned, which can result in losses if the stock declines significantly. Covered calls cap upside potential and do not protect against downside risk beyond the premium received.

BITO is subject to the risks associated with Bitcoin futures, including high volatility, liquidity risk, and tracking error. Past premium collection does not guarantee future income. The systematic approach described does not eliminate market risk or ensure profitability.

This content is for educational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice or a recommendation to trade any specific security or implement any particular strategy.

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Original Content by MyATMM Research Team | Published: August 18, 2024 | Educational Use Only