BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin ETF crossed a milestone last week when its assets under management (AUM) surpassed 500,000 BTC, equivalent to 48 billion USD.

The milestone was reached less than a year after the ETF’s launch on January 11, 2024.

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Reaches 500,000 BTC Breakthrough

According to a recent report by K33, the net inflow of 338.3 million USD on November 29th brought BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF holdings to 500,380 BTC.

This figure represents 2.38% of Bitcoin’s total supply, indicating growing demand for these investment products among institutional investors.

IBIT's BTC holdings surpassed half a million BTC yesterday! pic.twitter.com/YPiErB7w9j

— Vetle Lunde (@VetleLunde) December 3, 2024

Industry expert Vetle Lunde, K33’s head of research, described the achievement as “another major milestone following a string of huge launches this year.”

Lund also highlighted that institutional holdings in the ETF stood at 24% as of Q3 2024.

“Eventually, we expect to see these products emerge as a common portfolio diversifier for large funds, with 1-3% of their funds allocated to these funds, due to BTC’s propensity to enhance risk-adjusted returns,” he added.

BlackRock’s success reflects growing demand for bitcoin ETFs, with IBIT now the third-strongest ETF in the US year-to-date, behind larger funds like Invesco’s QQQ.

Impact on the entire cryptocurrency market

The rise of Bitcoin ETFs has played a significant role in Bitcoin’s record price action this year.

Bitcoin is currently trading at 94,762 USD at the time of writing, up 38% since March, when BlackRock CEO Larry Fink described IBIT as “the fastest-growing ETF in the history of ETFs.”

In an interview with Fox Business, he expressed surprise at how quickly Bitcoin’s value has increased over time.

In October, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink noted that Bitcoin’s growth isn’t limited to political events, including the Trump-Harris presidential primary.

During BlackRock’s third-quarter earnings call, he described Bitcoin as an “independent asset class” that transcends global politics.

Here's full Larry Fink quote on bitcoin/digital assets from the Q3 earnings call, he says bitcoin asset class in itself, they talking with institutions worldwide about allocation, dig assets remind him of the early days of the mortgage market (now $11T) and POTUS won't make dif pic.twitter.com/McvpW7cCnB

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) October 14, 2024

His claims actually turned out to be largely wrong, as US Bitcoin ETFs have seen net inflows of 353.6 million USD overall, bringing their total since inception to 31.2 billion USD, and the recent election results have had a significant impact on this performance.

With 6.6 billion USD flowing in in November alone, it shows significant investor interest.

Those watching the market believe this surge played a significant role in pushing Bitcoin’s price to its all-time high, with ETFs helping traditional investors gain exposure to Bitcoin.

The cumulative holdings of US Bitcoin ETFs are currently approaching 1.1 million BTC, close to the amount believed to have been allocated to Satoshi Nakamoto.

Based on mining patterns, Nakamoto’s holdings are thought to range between 600,000 and 1.5 million BTC, with most estimates placing the figure at 1.1 million BTC.

While Bitcoin ETFs dominate the market, US Ethereum ETFs are also seeing steady inflows.

BlackRock’s ETHA fund leads with net inflows of 55.9 million USD, bringing total inflows for all Ethereum ETFs in November to 1.1 billion USD.

BlackRock $ETHA

🚀 FLOW: 15,448.56 ETH, $55,916,844
🏦 TOTAL Ether in Trust: 710,695.3 $ETH

ETHA holdings are updated 13+ hours after the close of trading

— Ubiq ETF Bot (@ubiqetfbot) December 3, 2024

Experts predict that Bitcoin ETFs will continue to grow in the future. Lund expects funds like IBIT to surpass 1 million BTC in AUM by 2025, with the rise in Bitcoin’s value and the benefits of diversification.

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Margharet Tess

Editor, Developer at Cryptheory Labs

I have been active in the cryptocurrency world for over 6 years, during which I have written countless articles about this sector. What fascinates me most about cryptocurrencies is their technological aspect and the problems they aim to solve. In the past three years, I have ventured into app development and am currently working on a larger project called P2E Buzzer. Stay tuned for the surprise. 🙂 My previous experiences: Business2Community.com, TradingPlatforms.com

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