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I ignored gold for many years because it produces no income.
That changed once option-based gold income funds started appearing.
Since launching in July 2025, KGLD has outperformed several competing gold income funds while still delivering double-digit monthly income. More importantly, it has tracked the price of gold much more closely than most covered call funds typically do.
If you want exposure to gold without giving up regular income, KGLD is one of the more interesting funds in the space right now.
Distribution History
The first thing most investors notice about KGLD is the yield.
Monthly distributions jumped from roughly $0.30 to $0.45 earlier this year, pushing the indicated yield above 16%. Naturally, investors want to know if that’s sustainable.
According to Kurv Invest CEO Howard Chan, distributions are mainly driven by gold prices, volatility, and timing differences between market conditions and monthly payout decisions.
When gold prices rise and volatility increases, option premiums become more lucrative. Since KGLD generates income by selling call options, favorable conditions can temporarily boost distributions.
However, I prefer conservative assumptions.
Instead of assuming the recent $0.45 payouts continue indefinitely, I use the earlier $0.30 distribution as a more realistic baseline. At today’s pricing, that still implies roughly an 11–12% yield range. The most recent $0.40 distribution (for May 2026) is an indication that $0.45 was abnormally high.
The Strategy
Most covered call funds sacrifice too much upside during strong bull markets. That’s where KGLD separates itself from competitors like IGLD.
KGLD uses a layered option strategy designed to replicate gold prices while generating income from covered calls. Kurv also adds what it calls a “Core Position Strategy,” intended to preserve more upside during gold rallies. The full review linked below goes into more detail about the strategy.
The result is unusual for a covered call fund: KGLD has stayed remarkably close to the actual performance of gold itself.
Competition
The gold income fund space is growing quickly, but most competitors usually prioritize either:
Higher income with weaker total returns
Better appreciation with lower income
KGLD currently sits somewhere in the middle, offering both strong income and competitive total return.
The closest competitors are IGLD and IAUI. IAUI prioritizes distribution consistency, while IGLD has the longest operating history. KGLD, however, currently leads on total return since launch.
Taxes & My Take
Tax treatment will likely include a mix of ordinary income, capital gains, and return of capital generated through option losses. Importantly, that ROC is a tax classification, not necessarily destructive NAV erosion.
KGLD charges a 1% expense ratio. That’s slightly higher than IGLD, but the stronger performance has more than compensated for the difference so far.
I’m not a gold speculator, but I do value assets that don’t move perfectly in sync with the S&P 500.
Gold provides diversification.
KGLD provides diversification plus monthly income.
For now, that combination keeps it in my portfolio.
To learn more, click here for the full Review.
Want to see how these funds fit into a real-world retirement strategy? I share my full portfolio and monthly updates for free, here: Armchair Insider. If you want to learn from other Income Investors (I do!), check out the Armchair Insider Lounge.
