BlackRock bitcoin ETF edges GBTC in daily trade volumes for first time

As BlackRock’s fund approaches $3 billion of net inflows, Grayscale’s product has bled more than $5.6 billion in assets since converting to an ETF

article-image

Artwork by Crystal Le

share

Trading volumes for BlackRock’s spot bitcoin ETF eclipsed those of Grayscale Investments’ competing product at market close Thursday, marking a first since such funds began trading on Jan. 11. 

The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC) has dominated trading volumes in the first three weeks of US spot bitcoin funds trading. 

GBTC had accounted for nearly half of volumes — roughly $14.4 billion of $29.3 billion — in the first 15 trading days for the 10 ETFs in the segment, according to Bloomberg Intelligence data. 

But while GBTC notched trading volumes of about $292 million on Thursday, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) saw volumes of $302 million, Yahoo Finance data shows.

GBTC’s high trade volumes have not equated to inflows. The product has endured net outflows of $5.6 billion, as of Wednesday, since converting to an ETF. 

Read more: As GBTC outflows continue, will the largest bitcoin ETF be dethroned?

Industry watchers have said a portion of Grayscale investors were eager to exit GBTC after years of not being able to sell shares of the trust at their net asset value. GBTC also carries a 1.5% fee — significantly higher than rival funds with expense ratios ranging from 0.19% and 0.39%.

John Hoffman, Grayscale’s managing director of sales and distribution, previously told Blockworks that because large capital markets ETFs are used in a variety of investing strategies, “we anticipate GBTC’s diverse shareholder base will continue to deploy strategies that impact inflows and outflows.”

While Grayscale’s outflows have persisted in recent days, IBIT and the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) have seen about $2.8 billion and $2.5 billion of net inflows, respectively, since coming to market.

Read more: BlackRock-Fidelity bitcoin ETF asset race ‘a heavyweight fight that can go either way’

Net inflows into the 10 spot bitcoin ETFs — despite the heavy GBTC outflows — rose back above $1 billion on Monday and were at nearly $1.5 billion after Wednesday.


Start your day with top crypto insights from David Canellis and Katherine Ross. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter.

Explore the growing intersection between crypto, macroeconomics, policy and finance with Ben Strack, Casey Wagner and Felix Jauvin. Subscribe to the On the Margin newsletter.

The Lightspeed newsletter is all things Solana, in your inbox, every day. Subscribe to daily Solana news from Jack Kubinec and Jeff Albus.

Tags

Upcoming Events

Salt Lake City, UT

MON - TUES, OCT. 7 - 8, 2024

Blockworks and Bankless in collaboration with buidlbox are excited to announce the second installment of the Permissionless Hackathon – taking place October 7-8 in Salt Lake City, Utah. We’ve partnered with buidlbox to bring together the brightest minds in crypto for […]

Salt Lake City, UT

WED - FRI, OCTOBER 9 - 11, 2024

Permissionless is a conference for founders, application developers, and users. Come meet the next generation of people building and using crypto.

recent research

Blinks Report Image.png

Research

Blinks enable the ability to vampire attack user monetization of existing networks by inserting onchain and financialized functionalities directly within the popular social feeds and digital experiences of today.

article-image

I was excited about being on the precipice of realigning societal incentives and solving many issues plaguing our modern financial world

article-image

Cypherpunk Holdings has rebranded to Sol Strategies in a pivot to a Solana-first investment approach

article-image

BitGo’s wrapped bitcoin (wBTC) has a new custodial challenger

article-image

Make no mistake: Tether makes a ton of money. But exactly how much depends a lot on the price of bitcoin.

article-image

A new report on stablecoin activity in emerging markets shows their immense popularity in Nigeria

article-image

Version 2.0 brings users closer to a “Coinbase experience”