Bitcoin ETFs have surpassed one million BTC, equivalent to $69 billion, which accounts for 5.076% of the circulating supply of the top cryptocurrency. This milestone signifies the continued rapid growth of the sector.
Grayscale remains the leading ETF, despite experiencing losses for several months. However, BlackRock is quickly catching up and is expected to overtake Grayscale this week. Non-US ETFs also play a significant role in the sector’s development.
The unprecedented growth of Bitcoin ETFs continues, months after their initial approval. Since their launch in mid-January, the spot ETFs have been acquiring over 6,000 BTC daily. To put this into perspective, miners currently produce only 450 BTC per day since the halving in April reduced the reward from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.
The ETFs now hold a total of 1,002,343 BTC, valued at over $68 billion.
Grayscale remains the largest ETF, despite losing millions on a daily basis since January. It currently holds 289,040 BTC, worth just under $20 billion. BlackRock’s IBIT is closing in on Grayscale and holds just two thousand fewer Bitcoin, totaling $19.8 billion in assets under management. Based on the current trajectory, IBIT is projected to surpass Grayscale this week and become the world’s largest digital asset ETF.
Fidelity is another major player, with over 161,000 BTC, valued at just over $11.1 billion. ARK 21Shares and Bitwise are the only other US issuers with ETFs holding over 10,000 BTC, with Cathie Wood’s investment firm slightly ahead of the San Francisco-based crypto investment manager.
In total, American ETFs hold 855,619 BTC. Outside of the US, Canada has the largest ETF, the Purpose Bitcoin ETF, which holds over 27,000 BTC and is valued at $1.87 billion. Germany, Switzerland, the Channel Islands, and the Jersey Islands are among other notable players.
Despite making a significant impact with the launch of its ETFs, Hong Kong’s largest product holds just over 1,500 BTC, worth $108 million, which is not enough to rank among the top 25 ETFs globally. However, the city-state remains optimistic about the future of its ETFs and has refuted claims of underwhelming investor interest.
Looking ahead, the Bitcoin ETFs led to a price surge that propelled BTC to an all-time high in March. However, the cryptocurrency has struggled to gain momentum since then. It currently trades at $68,388, moving sideways over the past day with a slight dip on the weekly chart. Its market cap now exceeds $1.3 trillion, and its dominance remains above 52%.
Some analysts believe that institutions will eventually be compelled by game theory to invest heavily in Bitcoin. This theory suggests that rational actors make decisions based on the actions of their peers to maximize their own interests. In the case of institutional players, once they believe that their peers are investing in Bitcoin, they are likely to direct billions into the cryptocurrency. Already, major players like Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, the State of Wisconsin, George Soros, Blackrock, Fidelity, and Franklin Templeton have entered the market. According to game theory, it won’t be long before others follow suit, driving BTC to new heights.
