##  [# BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin Holdings Soar to 700K, Analyst Says](/sections/news/blackrocks-ibit-bitcoin-holdings-soar-700k-analyst-says) 

 

# BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin Holdings Soar to 700K, Analyst Says

 

 

\- The iShares ETF is buying 40,000 coins a month: Shaun Edmondson.  
\- The purchases come as the SEC’s Pierce says Bitcoin ETF redemptions are on the horizon.



 

 

 

 

 [![RonDay](/sites/default/files/styles/author_image_icon/public/2024-01/etf.com_Author_RonDay.png?itok=XBj72rrJ "RonDay")](/contributors/ron-day) 

[By Ron Day](/contributors/ron-day)

 Jul 09, 2025

 Edited by: David Tony

 

 

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[BlackRock Inc.’s (BLK)](/stock/blk) spot Bitcoin ETF is now the second-biggest holder of the cryptocurrency, holding 700,439 coins, scooping up the asset as supplies tighten.

The $76.3 billion [**iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT)**](/ibit) ranks behind the 1.2 million coins held by Satoshi Nakamoto and ahead of [Strategy Inc.’s (MSTR)](/mstr)'s 597,325 coins, according to data compiled and [posted](https://x.com/EdmondsonShaun/status/1942519379477864830) on X by crypto analyst Shaun Edmondson. Nakamoto is the pseudonym for the anonymous programmer or programmer group credited with creating the Bitcoin software.

## IBIT Purchases Stack Up

IBIT’s purchases come to 40,000 a month, and the company is on pace to catch Nakamoto by next May, Bloomberg Analyst Eric Balchunas [posted](https://x.com/EricBalchunas/status/1942556517003112577) on X.

Big holders are boosting purchases as the Bitcoin supply continues to drop, with about 450 created, or mined, daily, Edmondson wrote in his post. Demand is gaining for the asset as cryptocurrencies move into the mainstream, with Bitcoin increasingly used as a safe-haven hedge against market volatility similar to the role gold has played.

“BTC treasury companies keep stacking and total supply keeps falling ... ‘Get some / get yours’ if you can, while you still can,” Edmonson tweeted July 8.

The purchases also come against the backdrop of an expected jump in demand for coins. So-called in-kind redemptions, where crypto ETF holders can swap their shares for the actual cryptocurrency rather than cash, are on the horizon and generating interest, Securities and Exchange Commission Commissioner Hester Pierce said at a conference at the end of June, Forbes [reported](https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2025/06/28/huge-blackrock-crypto-bombshell-suddenly-hurtling-toward-bitcoin-at-key-price-turning-point/) last week.

 
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## In-Kind Crypto Redemptions

BlackRock has asked the SEC for permission to offer in-kind redemptions with crypto; redemptions are currently done in cash.

IBIT holds more than half of the 1.3 million coins owned by U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, Edmondson tweeted without disclosing his sources or methodology.

Grayscale’s two spot ETFs, the $20.2 billion [**Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC)**](/gbtc) and the $4.9 billion [**Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF (BTC)**](/btc) together hold the second-biggest quantity with 229,418, while Fidelity’s $22.1 billion [**Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC)**](/fbtc) holds the third-most at 204,118. The rest is spread among seven remaining funds.



 

 

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  Ron Day is Contributing Editor at etf.com. He joined the company in October 2022 and has served as Managing Editor, deputy managing editor and…   [View Bio](/contributors/ron-day)

 



 

 


 Related Topics  [Crypto ETFs](http://www.etf.com/topics/crypto-etfs) 

 [iShares](http://www.etf.com/topics/ishares) 

 [Spot Bitcoin](http://www.etf.com/topics/spot-bitcoin) 

 [Crypto](http://www.etf.com/topics/cryptocurrency)