BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust has emerged as the world’s largest Bitcoin fund, amassing nearly $20 billion in total assets since its U.S. listing earlier this year.
Data from HODL15Capital reveals that the ETF held $19.68 billion worth of Bitcoin as of Tuesday, surpassing the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust’s $19.65 billion. Fidelity Investments holds the third-largest spot Bitcoin product, valued at $11.1 billion.
BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, launched alongside Fidelity’s, was one of nine funds that debuted on January 11, coinciding with Grayscale’s conversion into an ETF. The approval of these spot Bitcoin ETFs marked a significant milestone for the crypto industry, making Bitcoin more accessible to investors and driving its price to a record high of $73,798 by March.
BlackRock’s ETF Leads in Inflows
Since its launch, the iShares Bitcoin Trust has attracted the highest inflow of funds, totaling $16.5 billion. In contrast, investors have withdrawn $17.7 billion from the Grayscale fund during the same period. Factors contributing to Grayscale’s outflows include higher fees and exits by arbitragers.
Grayscale has announced plans to launch a lower-fee clone of its main fund, as indicated in a March regulatory filing. The SEC approved the first U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs in January, following a court reversal in a case brought by Grayscale. Initially launched in 2013, the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust became the largest vehicle of its kind, though its shares often traded at significant deviations from net asset value, prompting the push for its conversion to an ETF.
Bitcoin ETFs Among Most Successful
The group of Bitcoin funds, with a total of $58.5 billion in assets, is hailed as one of the most successful new ETF categories. However, critics argue that volatile digital assets may not be suitable for widespread adoption, even within ETFs. Countries like Singapore and China have restricted or banned investor access to cryptocurrencies.
Vanguard Group, the world’s second-largest asset manager, stated in January that it has no plans to offer any crypto-related products. Bitcoin’s value has quadrupled since early last year, partly driven by the introduction of ETFs, marking a strong recovery from the bear market of 2022.
SEC Approves Spot Ether ETFs
Last week, the SEC signaled its willingness to allow ETFs for Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market value. On May 23, the SEC approved 19b-4 applications from VanEck, BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Franklin Templeton, ARK 21Shares, Invesco Galaxy, and Bitwise for issuing spot Ether ETFs. Several ETF issuers removed staking from their final amendments.
Analysis firm Kaiko reported that Grayscale’s forthcoming spot Ethereum ETF might face significant outflows, potentially averaging around $110 million per day.
