Several major Wall Street banks are acquiring shares of the Spot Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) as a means of gaining exposure to Bitcoin (BTC). This growing interest from financial institutions has sparked speculation about the possibility of Bitcoin reaching $100,000 in value. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently revealed that prominent banks in the United States, with a combined total of $469 billion in Assets Under Management (AUM), are purchasing Bitcoin through BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF. This development indicates a notable shift in institutional interest in Bitcoin.
Julian Fahrer, CEO of the Bitcoin-centric app Apollo Sats, shared this update on the X platform and highlighted the significance of American National Bank’s participation in Ark’s ETF. Fahrer also mentioned that various Wall Street corporations, including investment managers and family offices with AUM ranging from $200 million to $10 billion, have also invested in Bitcoin through ETFs.
One notable example is Park Avenue Securities LLC, which has an AUM of $9.9 billion and purchased 7,328 GBTC shares for $457,780. In total, Wall Street firms with a combined AUM of $15 billion have invested around $4 million in Bitcoin ETFs in the first quarter.
Matt Hougan, Bitwise’s Chief Investment Officer, discussed institutional Bitcoin purchases on the X platform and emphasized May 15 as an important date for investors to monitor. He explained that investors with over $100 million in AUM are required to file reports with the SEC, known as “13-F Filings,” disclosing their publicly traded holdings. Hougan believes that some of the names revealed in these filings will come as a surprise to many.
BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), is closely competing with Grayscale’s GBTC in terms of AUM. As of now, IBIT holds 266,587 BTC worth approximately $18.79 billion, while GBTC holds 315,941 BTC worth around $22.27 billion. This competition is driven by the disparity in flows between the two ETFs, with IBIT experiencing substantial inflows while GBTC has been seeing outflows since its launch in January.
If these trends continue, BlackRock has the potential to surpass Grayscale as the leading Bitcoin ETF in the United States. Notably, BlackRock recently surpassed MicroStrategy in terms of institutional Bitcoin holdings.
As of now, Bitcoin is trading at $67,554, representing a 4.68% decrease in the past day, with a market capitalization of $1.3 trillion. However, the trading volume has increased by 61.8% to $47.9 billion, indicating a potential increase in buying interest.
While it remains uncertain whether Bitcoin will reach $100,000 soon, the significant increase in trading volume suggests a bullish trajectory for the leading cryptocurrency.