The global digital asset market rejoiced by printing gains over the anticipation of approval of spot Bitcoin exchange traded fund (ETF) at the beginning of the year. However, that gain appears to fade as the biggest digital asset is on a constant slide since the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the so-called ‘next big thing in crypto.
Who holds upper hand in Bitcoin holdings?
Data provided by Lookonchain depicts that spot Bitcoin ETFs trading in the US cumulatively hold around 638,900 Bitcoin. The total value of these holdings stands at almost $27 billion.
According to the data, Grayscale, the world’s largest crypto asset manager is holding 566,973 Bitcoin single handedly. It is worth around approx $23.2 billion. However, it is a major decrease of 52,227 BTC (approx worth $2.14 billion) since the much anticipated approval of ETFs.
Grayscale’s website depicts that GBTC ETF’s price stood at $37.01 as of January 19, 2024. However, its total expense ratio stood at 1.5%.
Other ETF issuers and their BTC holdings include iShares (BlackRock) with 33,431 BTC ($1.37 billion), Fidelity with 24,857 BTC ($1.02 billion), and Bitwise with 10,152 BTC ($415.6 million).
Breaking all records
These funds have collectively amassed 95,000 BTC in just six full days of trading, with total assets under management (AUM) approaching $4 billion following the recent approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs. However, the capital influx into these new ETFs has exceeded the outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which experienced a $2.8 billion decrease in AUM during the first six days of trading.
Among the newly launched ETFs, Fidelity’s (FBTC) and BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) have both attracted over $1.2 billion in inflows. While FBTC has slightly higher inflows, IBIT currently has more AUM, with $1.4 billion compared to Fidelity’s nearly $1.3 billion.
Invesco’s ETF has seen steady growth, with its best day for inflows reaching over $63 million, though its total AUM has not surpassed $200 million. VanEck’s ETF also experienced its best day for inflows, pushing its total AUM beyond $100 million.
On their fifth trading day, the BTC ETFs netted a combined $440 million in Bitcoin from investors. BlackRock’s IBIT led the way with 8,700 BTC, valued at nearly $358 million. Overall, nine ETFs, excluding Grayscale, acquired almost 68,500 BTC, valued at around $2.8 billion, since their inception. Additionally, data indicates a 34% increase in daily trading volume for the “Newborn Nine” (excluding GBTC) by the fifth day of trading.
