BlackRock IBIT's 71-Day, $15B Inflow Streak Ends
The spot bitcoin ETF was one of the most popular launches of all time.
Investors' nonstop inflows into BlackRock Inc.’s spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund—to the tune of $15.5 billion since its Jan. 11 launch—finally took a pause yesterday.
After 71 days straight, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) ETF brought in no new money on April 24, according to Bloomberg Intelligence data.
The launch of IBIT, along with the nine other spot bitcoin ETFs that began trading in mid-January, was an historic and record-breaking event. Only nine other ETFs have seen longer straight inflow streaks, with the longest belonging to the JPMorgan Premium Income (JEPI), which brought in new cash for 160 days straight.
"It's daily inflow streak has ended at 71 days, shy of all time record but one for the ages and utterly smashing the record for a new launch," Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas wrote on X.
The ten spot bitcoin ETFs, which include IBIT, along with the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) and the Ark 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), smashed records for assets under management in their first few days of launching. Pent-up demand for an exchange-traded fund that held physically backed bitcoin, as opposed to futures contracts, was unleashed after more than a decade of back and forth between hopeful issuers and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Since launching, the ETFs collectively have accumulated about $60 billion in assets under management. The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), while technically the largest spot bitcoin ETF, has been bleeding billions due to the vehicle’s comparatively high fee of 1.5%, sky-high compared to Franklin Templeton with the lowest fee of 0.19%.
“A breather was due,” Balchunas said.
As the spot bitcoin ETFs get accepted on more brokerage platforms, they could see even more cash. Morgan Stanley is allowing brokers to pitch spot bitcoin ETFs to customers, unnamed sources told AdvisorHub.
Spot Ether ETFs
Many of the issuers that have launched spot bitcoin ETFs are already focused on the next hurdle—spot ether ETFs.
While analysts and executives are pessimistic that the SEC will approve the vehicles by their next deadline in May, they’re hopeful that in the long term, the ETFs, which hold Ethereum as opposed to futures contracts, will eventually hit the market.
Contact Lucy Brewster at [email protected].