BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, recently achieved a new milestone: its digital asset exchange-traded fund (ETF) surpassed Grayscale, the longtime leader in total assets under management.
BlackRock only offers two funds — IBIT (spot bitcoin) and ETHA (spot ether) — but according to blockchain intelligence firm Arkham, the two funds have combined assets under management (AUM) of $21.6 billion, slightly more than the $21.3 billion held by Grayscale’s four funds (GBTC, BTC Mini, ETHE, ETH mini).
Morgan Stanley recently said it sold off nearly all of its $269.9 million position in GBTC and now owns 5.5 million shares of IBIT, worth about $187.1 million at current prices. Goldman Sachs also said last week that it owns 7 million shares of IBIT, worth about $235 million at current prices, but also owns about $35 million worth of Grayscale’s convertible fund and about $150 million worth of other spot bitcoin ETF shares.
Nate Geraci, president of investment advisory firm The ETF Store, noted on X that BlackRock’s IBIT spot Bitcoin ETF has only had one day of net outflows since launch. Data from SoSoValue supports Geraci’s assertion, but the ETF has had 26 days of no net inflows or outflows to date.
While IBIT is significantly ahead of Grayscale’s spot Bitcoin ETF, BlackRock’s spot Ethereum product, ETHA, is only the third-largest fund by assets under management, according to SoSoValue data. ETHA has yet to see negative outflows, but has had four days of net zero trading since its launch on July 22, nearly a month ago.
Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet providing news, research and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is the largest investor in The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the cryptocurrency space. Cryptocurrency exchange Bitget is an anchor LP of Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to provide objective, impactful and timely information on the cryptocurrency industry. Below are the current financial disclosures.
© 2024 The Block. All rights reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not provided or intended to be legal, tax, investment, financial or other advice.