BlackRock Bitcoin ETF About to Surpass Largest Financial Sector Fund at $50B AUM

BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange traded fund (ETF) is about to become larger than the most popular financial sector ETF as it climbs towards the $50 billion assets under management milestone.

The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) now holds 500,380 BTC, worth approximately $48 billion at current BTC prices, according to iShares.

This milestone underscores the growing appetite among institutional investors for Bitcoin and signals a significant shift in how traditional financial institutions perceive crypto. Institutional backing at this scale not only increases Bitcoin’s legitimacy but also reflects how demand is expanding beyond the typical investor.

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF is now approaching $50 billion in assets under management (AUM) barely a year after its launch, placing it ahead of four of the top five Gold ETFs. Just $26 million and $4 million separate it from the largest gold ETF (SPDR Gold Shares) and from the largest financial sector fund (the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund, or XLF), respectively.

It is now nine spots away from the top thirty ETFs by AUM.

Although the Bitcoin ETF’s performance this year has been impressive, it is still far from matching the industry’s largest ETFs. A staggering $567 billion separates it from the largest SPY ETF (SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust),

IBIT’s Performance

By crossing the 500,000 Bitcoin mark, Blackrock’s Bitcoin ETF’s BTC holding officially surpassed MicroStrategy’s in less than a year after its launch. However, it is worth noting that BlackRock’s BTC belongs to its shareholders, not the company itself.

BlackRock’s IBIT is the largest out of 32 U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs. Last month, the Bitcoin Spot ETFs surpassed $100 billion in AUM amid Bitcoin’s record-breaking rally.