BlackRock CEO Larry Fink reiterated his bullish stance on Bitcoin, citing record demand for the company’s iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT). “I am very optimistic about the long-term viability of Bitcoin,” Fink said in an interview with Fox Business News.
He expressed surprise at the unprecedented retail interest in IBIT. “I would have never predicted this kind of retail demand,” he said.
Launched in January 2024, IBIT has quickly become the fastest-growing ETF in history, surpassing Grayscale and cementing its position as a long-term leader in Bitcoin ETF investments.
Fink’s comments come as IBIT solidifies its position as the largest ETF in the global ETF market. According to ETFs’ 2024 performance report, IBIT has accumulated over $37 billion in assets. It ranks third on the 2024 ETF leaderboard, only behind Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF (VOO) and iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV).
While traditional equity ETFs continue to dominate, IBIT’s rapid growth reflects a shift in investor sentiment, with both institutional and retail investors increasingly turning to Bitcoin ETFs.
Interestingly, while BlackRock’s IBIT accumulated over $37 billion in new investments in 2024, Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust Fund (GBTC) experienced an outflow of $21.3 billion. Meanwhile, the figures for IBIT have even improved further, reaching $40 billion.
BlackRock’s closest competitor in the US ETF market, Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), has seen strong inflows but still lags far behind IBIT. Currently, FBTC has attracted over $12 billion in inflows.
The significant inflows into IBIT have had a noticeable impact on the Bitcoin spot market. Bitcoin surpassed the $100,000 threshold, reaching a peak of $110,000. At the time of writing, Bitcoin’s trading price stands at $98,592, representing a 1.2% growth in the past few days.
