In a significant development for the cryptocurrency market, the long-awaited bitcoin (btc) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) finally received approval from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
BlackRock CEO Larry FinkA seasoned veteran in the financial industry, he has made notable statements about btc while also expressing interest in an ethereum (eth) spot ETF.
ethereum ETF as a catalyst for tokenization?
During a recent interview On CNBC's Squawk Box, Fink drew a parallel between bitcoin and gold, stating that bitcoin is “no different than what gold represented for thousands of years.”
Fink emphasized that bitcoin is an asset class that offers protection and, unlike gold, there is a limited supply of bitcoin, reaching a limit on the total amount that can be created.
The Blackrock CEO further explained that BlackRock's objective with its bitcoin Spot ETF is to provide an instrument to store wealth, creating a benchmark between bitcoin and gold.
Curiously, Fink also voiced their belief in the value of an ethereum spot ETF. He highlighted that these developments are steps towards tokenization and sees it as the future direction of the industry.
Fink's sentiment towards cryptocurrencies has evolved over time. Initially, the ethereum-etfs-1032963877″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener nofollow”>accepted up to being a detractor of them, but in the last two years, he has become a firm believer in their potential. However, Fink does not consider cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, as currencies, but rather as an asset class.
BlackRock's IBIT Ranks Third in bitcoin ETF Trading Debut
On the first day of trading for the 11 spot bitcoin ETFs, Bloomberg ETF Expert Eric Balchunas reported that the Bitwise bitcoin ETF (BITB) emerged as the leader, attracting $238 million in inflows. The Fidelity ETF (FBTC) followed closely, while the BlackRock That's going to go took third place.
Balchunas noted that total inflows through ETFs amounted to an impressive $721 million, providing a glimpse of investor interest in these new financial products. However, he acknowledged that the flow data is still being analyzed and more information will be available soon. Balchunas further stated:
Note that most of this flow data comes from T+0, but the cr/rd log takes time to exit the stock anyway, so IBIT could see a mass of money tonight. Additionally, GBTC is T+1, so NO activity from yesterday will be reflected in flows until Friday at the earliest and possibly Tuesday night.
At the time of writing, bitcoin price has retreated to the $45,200 level, experiencing a drop of over 2% in the last 24 hours, despite the long-awaited approval of ETFs.
However, it is important to note that the true effects of these index funds on the price of bitcoin and the bitcoin market in general are expected to play out over the long term.
Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com
