BlackRock’s IBIT flips Grayscale’s GBTC to lead US spot Bitcoin ETFs

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As a researcher with a background in finance and experience following the crypto market closely, I’m excited to witness BlackRock’s IBIT surpass Grayscale’s GBTC as the largest spot bitcoin ETF in the U.S. This development is significant, especially considering the rapid inflows into IBIT and outflows from GBTC in recent days.

BlackRock’s IBIT has surpassed Grayscale’s GBTC, becoming the largest spot bitcoin ETF in the U.S.

As a crypto investor, I’ve noticed an intriguing development following the recent surge in BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF. On Tuesday alone, this ETF experienced an impressive influx of approximately $102 million.

According to a report published on IBIT’s product page on Wednesday morning, the firm currently holds approximately $20 billion in bitcoin. On the other hand, GBTC reportedly managed $19.7 billion after undergoing net outflows amounting to $105 million on the same day.

Starting from May 28, BlackRock integrated a bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) into the portfolios of its income and bond-centric funds during the initial quarter. The Strategic Income Opportunities Fund (BSIIX) currently owns over $3.5 million in IBIT, while the Strategic Global Bond Fund (MAWIX) has an investment of approximately $485,000 in this Bitcoin ETF.

Five months after the green light for bitcoin Spot ETFs, this latest advancement represents a major achievement in the realm of crypto-financial innovations.

Grayscale’s GBTC ETF came with a 1.5% fee, significantly more than BlackRock’s ISHares’ IBIT. Consequently, this higher cost deterred many investors who sought lower fee options from IBIT.

As a researcher, I’ve come across an intriguing situation involving Grayscale. They held approximately 620,000 Bitcoins as of January 10, 2024, representing over 3% of the total circulating supply. However, despite this significant holding, they maintained a fee of 1.5%, which was significantly higher than the average fee of 0.2% among their peers. This stance remained unchanged even after investors withdrew over 330,000 Bitcoins from Grayscale. The ‘differentiated’ strategy, it seems, did not go as planned.

Lately, there’s been a significant increase in IBIT’s purchasing activity, fueled by optimistic feelings towards Bitcoin and the wider crypto market. This trend was reinforced by the approval of ETH-backed ETFs on American exchanges and renewed endorsement from U.S. political figures for cryptocurrencies.

I noticed an unexpected change in IBIT’s trend, which had previously experienced minimal or no inflows prior to May 15th. Surprisingly, this shift resulted in the first recorded outflows for IBIT as early as April, sparking a sense of pessimism among investors.

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2024-05-29 12:36