The world’s largest asset manager BlackRock has recently launched its first Ethereum-based tokenized fund, the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL), which saw the firm fund an Ethereum wallet with $100 million worth of USDC.
This initial foray into crypto, however, has taken an unexpected turn. Following the public identification of BlackRock’s wallet address, a wave of crypto enthusiasts sent a flurry of tokens, including memecoins and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), to the address.
BlackRock’s digital coffers now hold at least $100,000 worth of these unexpected assets, including 500,000 unshETHing_Token (USH), 250,000 DETF tokens, and 10,000 Realio Network (RIO) tokens. The wallet also received notable memecoins like Mog Coin (Mog) and popular NFTs like Chungos and KaijuKingz.
Cryptocurrency users also sent funds to the wallet’s address on other networks, with holdings on Coinbase’s Base, for example, now topping $15,000 according to analytics tools like Zerion, with the majority of these holdings being in a token called “BLACK ROCK.”
BUIDL is introducing a novel opportunity for accredited investors to generate yield in U.S. dollars via a tokenized mechanism. Accredited investors can subscribe to the fund through Securitize Markets, and the tokenization of the fund presents multiple benefits, as highlighted by the firm: it facilitates direct issuance and trading of ownership on the blockchain, enhancing efficiency and transparency. Investors also enjoy the perks of immediate settlements, round-the-clock transferability, and the freedom to select their preferred custody options.
BNY Mellon will further enhance the fund’s functionality by enabling interoperability between digital and traditional markets acting as its custodian and administrator. The fund is designed to maintain the value of $1 per token and to automatically distribute daily accrued dividends to investors’ wallets.
With a focus on stability, BUIDL plans to allocate investments exclusively in cash, U.S. Treasury bills, and repurchase agreements, thereby establishing a conservative yield-generating approach on the Ethereum blockchain.
BlackRock’s CEO, Larry Fink, has notably undergone a shift in his stance on cryptocurrency. Once a vocal critic, referring to Bitcoin as an “index of money laundering” in 2017, Fink now embraces the potential of blockchain technology and believes the future lies in “tokenization of all financial assets” on a shared ledger.
Featured image via Unsplash.
