BlackRock’s income and bond-focused funds have acquired shares of the company’s own spot Bitcoin ETF, as revealed by regulatory filings. In the first quarter, BlackRock’s Strategic Income Opportunities Fund (BSIIX) purchased $3.56 million worth of iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) shares, while its Strategic Global Bond Fund (MAWIX) bought $485,000 worth, according to SEC filings dated May 28.
The IBIT holdings are a small part of BSIIX and MAWIX’s portfolios, which are valued at $37.4 billion and $776.4 million, respectively. As of May 24, IBIT holds $19.61 billion in Bitcoin, just behind the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which holds $19.76 billion according to Grayscale’s data on May 28.
Globally, spot Bitcoin ETFs now hold over 1 million Bitcoin, worth more than $68 billion, representing nearly 5.10% of the 19.7 million BTC in circulation, according to CoinGecko.
SEC filings show that over 600 U.S. investment firms have purchased spot Bitcoin ETFs since their launch in January.
Prominent buyers include Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Royal Bank of Canada, BNP Paribas, UBS, and hedge funds such as Millennium Management and Schonfeld Strategic Advisors. Millennium Management is the largest accumulator, with $1.9 billion invested, including $844.2 million in IBIT and $806.7 million in the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC).
On May 23, BlackRock was among eight firms to have their spot Ether ETF applications approved in the U.S., but the SEC still needs to approve their Form S-1 filings for trading to begin.
May 2024, Cryptoniteuae
