Key Points
- U.S. Bitcoin ETFs have collectively accumulated over 1 million BTC, surpassing the holdings of Bitcoin’s creator – Satoshi Nakamoto.
- Despite a recent decline in daily total net inflows, Bitcoin ETFs now manage assets totaling $70.86 billion.
U.S. Bitcoin ETFs have achieved a significant milestone by accumulating over 1 million Bitcoin (BTC). This prediction was made by Eric Balchunas, a Senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, who anticipated this would happen by mid-December.
BlackRock’s purchase of 12,127 BTC has expedited this timeline. Balchunas commented on this substantial accumulation, stating that they could surpass Satoshi’s holdings in less than two weeks.
Bitcoin ETFs’ Current Holdings
At present, BlackRock holds 429,185 BTC, valued at about $30.8 billion. U.S. Bitcoin ETFs collectively manage assets totaling $70.86 billion, which is 5.12% of Bitcoin’s market cap. Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin’s creator, is estimated to hold 1.1 million BTC, currently valued at $76 billion.
While there was a surge in investment in late October, daily total net inflows dipped to $32.14 million on 31 October. Despite this decline, Balchunas reported that IBIT attracted more cash than the total of 13,227 ETFs worldwide over the past week.
Industry Expert Opinions
The performance of IBIT hasn’t gone unnoticed. Nate Geraci, President of the ETF Store, called it a “money vacuum cleaner.” He pointed out that BTC ETFs’ $70 billion in assets was more than 50% of the $130 billion held by gold ETFs since 2004—all within just 10 months of their 2024 launch.
On Bitcoin’s 16th anniversary, the value of Bitcoin dipped below the $70,000-mark. This downturn may present an opportunity for institutional investors to “buy the dip” and takeover Nakamoto’s holdings sooner than expected. This could accelerate the shift towards institutional dominance in a space originally envisioned as decentralized.
