BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, known as IBIT, has made quite a splash. It now holds more assets than all 50+ regional ETFs in Europe combined. That’s impressive, especially since some of these ETFs have been around for 20 years.
Recently, Bitcoin ETFs have seen record inflows, and BlackRock is leading the pack.
ETF analyst Todd Sohn shared this surprising fact. He compared the performance of regional ETFs to the rapid success of Bitcoin products. “IBIT already has as much in assets as the 50 European-focused ETFs combined, and they’ve been around for 20 years,” noted Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas. Sohn also pointed out the struggles of these regional ETFs, mentioning their lack of new products and poor performance over the years.
Since launching in January, IBIT has been a dominant force in the Bitcoin ETF market. After Donald Trump won the election, IBIT quickly surpassed its previous all-time high and even exceeded the value of BlackRock’s gold-based ETF.
This momentum has remained strong. In November, Bitcoin ETFs reached their highest net inflow ever, totaling $6.1 billion, with IBIT leading the way. Just in the first week of December, Bitcoin ETFs saw the second-largest weekly inflow, again driven by IBIT.
Currently, BlackRock’s fund has over $51 billion in net assets. This represents nearly half of the entire spot Bitcoin ETF market in the U.S.
BlackRock isn't just excelling in weekly inflows. Last week, all 12 spot ETFs together owned more Bitcoin than Satoshi Nakamoto. Nearly half of those holdings belong to BlackRock, which continues to buy Bitcoin at a significant rate.
These ETFs reflect the growing acceptance of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency among institutions. However, for those institutions that are slow to adapt, the changing landscape could pose risks. In late October, economists from the European Central Bank suggested implementing price controls on Bitcoin. This highlights the EU’s tough stance on cryptocurrency and the underperformance of its ETFs.