The current lull in the spot Bitcoin ETF segment is likely to be followed by a new wave of a different type of investors, according to Robert Mitchnick, head of digital assets at BlackRock, in an interview with CoinDesk.
In the coming months, financial institutions, including pension, endowment, and sovereign wealth funds, are expected to begin trading exchange-traded funds based on the leading cryptocurrency, he believes.
He noted that the company is witnessing a “renewed discussion around Bitcoin” in terms of integrating it into investment portfolios. Mitchnick highlighted that BlackRock plays an “educational role” for parties interested in the instrument.
Currently, some registered investment advisors already offer clients BlackRock’s IBIT fund, but only on a recommended basis. The next step should be to expand the product to major consulting firms like Morgan Stanley.
The top manager added that there are holders of the leading cryptocurrency who would prefer to own the asset in a brokerage account and not worry about non-custodial storage and tax reporting complexities.
“While becoming the largest spot Bitcoin ETF would be an impressive achievement, BlackRock is actually focused not on this competition, but on educating its clients,” he emphasized.
Mitchnick outlined the company’s three main directions in the industry — “crypto assets, stablecoins, and tokenization.”
On May 1, outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs reached their highest level since the products were approved — $563.8 million. BlackRock’s IBIT recorded a negative dynamic for the first time, losing $36.93 million.
According to SoSoValue, at the time of writing, BlackRock’s fund manages assets worth $15.85 billion. IBIT has almost “caught up” with the converted GBTC trust from Grayscale, which stands at $16.65 billion.
Earlier, Bernstein described the slowdown in inflows to digital gold-based exchange-traded funds as temporary.
Back in March, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink expressed his pleasant surprise at the interest of retail investors in the company’s Bitcoin ETF.