When Bitwise Asset Management launched its Bitcoin ETF in January 2024, it promised to hand over 10% of its gross profits each year to the people who keep Bitcoin running. Fourteen months later, that promise is still being kept and the check is even bigger.
Increased open source efforts
On March 4, the company announced a $233,000 donation to three organizations that fund BTC open source developers: Brink, OpenSats, and the Human Rights Foundation’s Bitcoin Development Fund.
Combined with last year’s donations, Bitwise has now put more than $380,000 into the hands of programmers who maintain and secure the world’s largest cryptocurrency network. That money didn’t come from marketing budgets or corporate goodwill. That comes directly from the ETF’s profits.
As part of our annual commitment to support Bitcoin open source developers, Bitwise is proud to donate $233,000 to support the unsung heroes who maintain and protect the Bitcoin network.
This year saw significant growth for the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF ($BITB), which led to… pic.twitter.com/wjEoLHDVsY
— Bitwise (@Bitwise) March 4, 2026
Image Credit: Reuters/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
Its core Bitcoin ETF (ticker BITB) has attracted more than $2.5 billion in investor inflows since its launch. This increase will lead to an increase in annual donations.
As BITB grows, so do your contributions. Bitwise made a similar statement when announcing this year’s donation, confirming that future donations will scale with the fund’s assets under management.
thank you @bitwise A team that supports open source Bitcoin development. https://t.co/xDgQTc5RHk
— Brink (@bitcoinbrink) March 4, 2026
Bitcoin’s invisible workforce
Open source developers are rarely talked about. They write code, review suggestions, fix bugs, and discuss technical upgrades on public forums, mostly for free.
The three nonprofit organizations receiving Bitwise donations exist specifically to change this. Brink and OpenSats offer grants and fellowships to full-time contributors. The Human Rights Foundation’s Bitcoin Development Fund focuses on reaching developers in countries where economic freedom is most at risk.
For these organizations, donations from companies of this size are important. The core development of top crypto assets has no central authority and no company behind it that pays the salaries. Funding comes from donors and consistency is key.
Beyond cryptography
Bitwise has extended the same model to Ethereum. According to reports, the company donated a portion of the profits from its Ethereum Spot ETF (ETHW) to Ethereum open source contributors last year.
The company manages over $15 billion in assets across more than 40 products, including ETFs related to XRP, Solana, and Dogecoin.
The broader picture is that companies are using the ETF business not only to make money from cryptocurrencies, but also to fund the operations that keep them functioning.
Whether it becomes an industry standard remains to be seen. For now, Bitwise is one of the few companies that does it consistently, putting receipts on the table every year.
Featured images from Pexels, charts from TradingView
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