BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Faces Unprecedented Withdrawals

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, known as IBIT, witnessed its largest withdrawal of funds since its inception.

This notable financial movement occurred on a single day, with the Nasdaq-listed fund seeing over $332 million exit.

This record-breaking outflow surpasses the previous high of $188 million recorded in late December.

Launched nearly a year ago, IBIT has been a significant player with more than $53 billion in net assets.

The recent withdrawals, which began on December 20, mark the first time the fund has experienced such consecutive decreases, ranging from $17 million to the substantial amount noted last Thursday.

According to SoSoValue, this trend could suggest various market behaviors, including portfolio rebalancing or profit-taking by investors, rather than a straightforward loss of confidence in the ETF’s strategy or the bitcoin sector itself.

While BlackRock faced these outflows, other ETFs like Bitwise’s BITB and Fidelity’s FBTC experienced inflows, drawing $48 million and $36 million, respectively.

On the other hand, Grayscale’s GBTC also saw a decrease, albeit smaller, with $23 million leaving the fund.

Currently, Bitcoin’s value is just under $97,000, reflecting a 1.5% increase over the past 24 hours, showing that despite the outflows from some funds, the broader cryptocurrency market continues to attract interest.