Where hBTC’s Bitcoin Yield Comes From + Early 👀 at Exit Fees

Welcome to the latest edition of BitcoinYield. This week, we're digging into hBTC with Jorge Cuartero from Syntetika and Russell Thompson from Hilbert Capital. Our conversation covers the BTC Basis+ strategy behind the vault and how they approach risk.

Last week, we looked at how onchain vaults connect Bitcoin holders with strategies run through traditional fund infrastructure. This conversation puts one of those models under the microscope.

A note from our partner: Cofund

Who has to approve a transaction before your Bitcoin moves?

For teams managing a Bitcoin treasury, that question matters as much as where the funds are held. Maybe more so with cyberattacks on the rise. Cofund brings all your treasury management into multisig approvals with a shared workspace for Bitcoin and stablecoin payments. You can also purchase tokenized stocks today, yield options coming soon.

Set the signing threshold, review payment proposals together, and keep a record of what moved. Multisig can reduce reliance on a single key when signers and backups are kept independent.

With Cofund, your team can:

• Coordinate approvals: Payments are proposed and executed once the required signers approve.
• Set transaction policies: Define approval thresholds, spending caps and allowed recipients.
• Keep operations organized: View balances and transaction history across vaults, with CSV exports for your records.

Explore Cofund for your team →

Syntetika × Hilbert Capital: Inside hBTC

We sat down with Jorge Cuartero from Syntetika and Russell Thompson from Hilbert Capital to discuss hBTC, the BTC Basis+ yield strategy behind it, and risk management.

Syntetika describes hBTC as the vault token for BTC Basis+, a Bitcoin-denominated delta-neutral strategy. Its current FAQ says vault values follow independently administered fund NAVs, with exchange rates updated after valuations are verified and published onchain. Deposit and redemption requests follow each fund's dealing calendar; they are not instantaneous. Delta-neutral strategies can still lose money. Read Syntetika's FAQ →

Three things that stood out from the conversation:

• Basis+ earns across several strategies. Russell describes basis and inverse-basis trades alongside exchange, funding, volatility and yield-curve arbitrage. The mix changes as opportunities change. He says Hilbert reduced risk earlier in the year, then increased it as conditions improved.
• The 1–1.5% monthly figure is a target. Russell discusses it as the strategy's return objective, not a promised payout or hBTC's current realized yield. Market-neutral positioning still carries trading, counterparty and operational risk.
• Investor rights matter alongside the token. Jorge explains that the permissionless route places fund-investor rights with an SPV. He says Syntetika is developing additional routes for institutions that need to retain those rights directly. That's a distinction worth understanding before depositing.

Watch the full Syntetika × Hilbert Capital conversation →

Watch the full episode on YouTube →

Read our Syntetika hBTC research →

This week’s yield snapshot

November 9, 2026. The 3.00% APR available to eligible hBTC holders comes from Merkl incentives. The vault’s trading performance is a separate figure.

• Midas mHyperBTC: 2.79% APY — Trailing 30-day BTC-denominated NAV
• Solv BTC+: 3.00% APY — Trailing 30-day BTC-denominated NAV
• Lombard Bitcoin Earn: 1.63% APY — Trailing 30-day BTC-denominated share price; excludes BARD incentives
• Binance BTC Yield: 1.68% APY — Trailing 30-day BTCY NAV in BTC; excludes separate BTC distributions
• Starknet BTC staking: 3.47% APR — Current staking quote paid in STRK
• Amboss Magma: 4.42% APR — Average price across completed BTC channel leases to date

Source: BitcoinYield snapshot, November 9 at 10:35 a.m. PST, and linked provider data. Rates use different methods and reward assets.

Compare the latest products and custody models →

View the exit fees graphic →

Yield from the Field

What does it cost to get out?

We’ve been comparing how Bitcoin yield products calculate performance fees, which charge an exit fee, and how much it costs to skip the usual redemption window when instant liquidity is available.

This X article is an overview.

Say you earn 1% in BTC over a 4-month period. A 0.25% fee on the full redemption eats a month of returns. We touch on these broad terms when we review individual products. Would a side-by-side comparison, worked examples or deeper context be more useful?

What would help you most when comparing Bitcoin yield fees and exit terms?

Your answer will help us decide where to spend our research time.

• A side-by-side comparison table
• Worked examples showing what I’d keep after fees
• The brief notes in product coverage are enough

Vote in the original newsletter on beehiiv →

What You May Have Missed

• Stacks plans a self-custodial BTC staking auction.
  The 2027 roadmap also includes borrowing against staked BTC.
• Lombard’s bridge deadline is December 10.
  Move LBTC or BTC.b from TAC, Sonic, Katana or Berachain to Ethereum.
• Threshold restarts tBTC onchain.
  The app stayed paused as patched nodes reconnected.
• FalconX adds cbBTC to its credit facility.
  Depositors gain exposure to FalconX’s institutional lending via Pareto.
• LNbits urged operators to shut down on Nov. 8.
  BitTipBot’s operator reported losing 2.29 million sats.
• We compared exit fees across Bitcoin yield products.
  At 3% BTC APR, a 0.25% exit fee can erase about a month of earnings.
• Aave DAO unanimously backs native BTC collateral for V4.
  Babylon vaults would let holders borrow against unwrapped BTC; a final vote is pending.

That’s it for this week. Reply with feedback, what you want us to cover, or to connect directly with the team. Stack sats on sats.

— Jake from the BitcoinYield team