BlackRock spot Bitcoin ETF hits $70B AUM fastest in history
BlackRock spot Bitcoin ETF has officially become the fastest exchange-traded fund in history to surpass $70 billion in assets under management.
According to a June 9 post on X by Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, the iShares Bitcoin Trust crossed the $70 billion mark in just 341 days, five times faster than the previous record of 1,691 days set by the SPDR Gold Shares ETF.
IBIT now manages $71.9 billion in assets and holds 661,457 Bitcoin (BTC), making BlackRock the world’s largest institutional holder of Bitcoin, ahead of Binance and Strategy. The ETF is currently trading at $61.77 per share and has recorded $201 million in inflows so far in June, following a record $5.9 billion in May inflows.
The fund started trading on the Nasdaq on Jan. 11, 2024, a day after spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved by U.S. regulators. IBIT’s first day of trading saw a volume of over $1 billion, indicating strong interest from institutional and retail investors.
In an interview with Yahoo Finance on June 9, Robert Mitchnick, head of digital assets at BlackRock, attributed IBIT’s success to Bitcoin’s expanding use as an inflation hedge and alternative store of value. He also noted that IBIT has outpaced even the world’s largest gold fund in inflows this year, with $6.96 billion net since January, ranking sixth among all ETFs.
The fund’s rapid growth has led some analysts to speculate that BlackRock could eventually overtake Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, who is estimated to hold around 1.1 million BTC. Balchunas previously projected this could happen by the end of next summer.
Adding to its momentum, on June 4, Russia’s MOEX exchange launched futures for IBIT, though these remain limited to accredited investors. IBIT’s rise coincides with the growing interest in crypto ETFs and institutional exposure to Bitcoin, solidifying its position as the industry leader in the rapidly changing digital assets landscape.
