BlackRock’s spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), the iShares bitcoin Trust, saw a $13.5 million outflow on Thursday. This was the first outflow for iBIT since May 1. Thursday’s outflow was the second for the iShares bitcoin Trust since its launch in January. The ETF has seen consistent inflows on an almost daily basis, cementing itself as a dominant bitcoin investment product.
Prior to Thursday's $13.5 million outflow, the last time the fund saw withdrawals was May 1, when $37 million was withdrawn. That coincided with the time bitcoin hit a local low of $56,000.
The outflow comes as spot bitcoin ETFs recorded a third consecutive day of withdrawals totaling $71.8 million on Thursday. Competing bitcoin ETFs Grayscale, Fidelity, Valkyrie and Bitwise also saw outflows ranging from $8 million to $31 million.
Meanwhile, ARK’s bitcoin ETF saw an inflow of $5.3 million, bucking the negative trend. The mixed flows highlight the diverse perspectives of investors amid bitcoin’s stagnation below $60,000. The fact that BlackRock’s IBIT saw an outflow for the first time in months is a notable development. It could indicate a bottom has been reached like last time, or it could be the start of more outflows.
However, BlackRock’s bitcoin ETF has attracted a staggering $20 billion+ in net inflows over the course of its existence. It remains the dominant bitcoin spot fund with over 350,000 btc under management, making it one of the largest. bitcoin-treasury-public-listed-companies/”>institutional bitcoin holders.