According to Eric Balchunas, Bloomberg's senior ETF analyst, Hong Kong-based alternative investment firm Yong Rong Asset Management has scooped up $38 million worth of shares of BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT).
Notably, this makes up an impressive 12% of the fund's total holdings. Despite the recent launch of cryptocurrency ETFs in Hong Kong, Balchunas claims that the firm likely opted for a U.S.-based Bitcoin ETF due to the allure of low fees and high volume.
Earlier this week, BNP Paribas, the largest banking group in Europe, also recently disclosed that it holds a small number of IBIT shares in what appears to be another sign of mainstream adoption.
As reported by U.Today, BlackRock's IBIT ended its inflow streak on April 25 at 73 days. Amid the recent Bitcoin price crash, the record-breaking ETF recorded its first outflows on May 2. IBIT even posted the biggest discount ever to its underlying asset earlier this week, with Bitcoin ETFs suffering from severe pressure.
Godfrey BenjaminHowever, despite the poor performance of Bitcoin ETFs in recent weeks, BlackRock remains highly optimistic. During a recent interview, Robert Mitchnick, the financial giant's head of digital assets, predicted that IBIT could see a flood of investment from institutional investors, including sovereign wealth funds. Presently, these institutions are in the middle of performing their due diligence. In fact, institutional investors have been engaging with BlackRock regarding Bitcoin for several years.
As reported by U.Today, Mitchnick recently noted that there was little demand for Ethereum, which is why BlackRock is primarily focused on Bitcoin.
Dan Burgin
Yuri Molchan
Godfrey Benjamin
