Last month, on January 10, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved nine Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and since then these have seen their holdings grow to surpass 693,374 BTC worth over $34 billion.
Inflows to these spot Bitcoin ETFs surged in February, with over 12,000 BTC being added to the assets under management of these funds in a single day on February 13, led by BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust which added 7,497 BTC, according to data from on-chain analysis service Lookonchain.
This remarkable growth contrasts with the slowing outflows from Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust, which recorded a decrease to just 1,147 BTC, or $56 million, after previously experiencing higher rates of withdrawals.
Other notable contributions came from ARK 21 Shares, Bitwise Bitcoin ETF, Vaneck Bitcoin Trust, and Valkyrie Bitcoin Trust, illustrating the broad interest in Bitcoin investments.
Excluding Grayscale, these eight ETFs hold a total of 227,986 BTC. Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust, it’s worth noting, was already the largest Bitcoin investment vehicle before being converted into an ETF and seeing significant outflows. BlackRock’s iShares notably entered the top 5 U.S. ETPs by capital inflow, showcasing the significant investor interest in Bitcoin as an asset class, with inflows surpassing $3.19 billion since its launch.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs have experienced explosive growth, amassing $10 billion in assets under management within just the first 20 days of trading, according to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, citing data from BitMEX Research.
Bitcoin’s price has benefitted from investments in spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, rising more than 23% over the past month as demand keeps pressuring the limited supply available on the market. Over the last six months, BTC’s price is up over 90%, as investors bet on the cryptocurrency, expecting the launch of the ETFs.
The flagship cryptocurrency has also been seeing its price rise ahead of its upcoming halving event, which will reduce the coinbase reward miners receive per block found from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC, further adding pressure to the available supply. Bitcoin is now trading at $51,700.
Featured image via Unsplash.
