BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has achieved an impressive milestone by surpassing $10 billion in assets under management (AUM) in just over seven weeks. This achievement is noteworthy considering that the first U.S. gold-backed ETF took more than two years to reach the same figure.
As of March 1, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF reached $10 billion in AUM, which is equivalent to approximately 39 trading days since its launch. In contrast, the first gold ETF in the United States, SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), took more than two years to achieve this milestone after its introduction in 2004, as reported by the Zero Hedge finance blog.
Reflexivity Research co-founder Will Clemente highlighted the significant difference between Bitcoin ETF inflows and gold’s performance, stating, “Bitcoin ETF inflows have absolutely blown gold’s out of the water. Not even close, utterly dwarfed, decimated.” Last week, there were multiple days of record-breaking inflows to spot Bitcoin ETFs, with February 26, 27, and 28 each surpassing $500 billion.
Retired venture capitalist Jeff Kirdeikis shared a chart demonstrating the inflows of BTC ETFs compared to the outflows of gold funds. The chart revealed that Bitcoin products have already accumulated nearly half of the value of gold funds since their launch in January.
Despite these impressive statistics, gold enthusiast Peter Schiff remained unconvinced. He criticized CNBC for focusing on Bitcoin and new Bitcoin ETFs, claiming they neglected to report on gold’s price increase and the record-high price of the gold ETF GLD.
In terms of price performance, spot gold prices reached near-peak levels of $2,081 per ounce on March 3. However, the precious metal has only gained 1% since the beginning of the year. In contrast, Bitcoin prices have surged by 50% during the same period.
In late February, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas commented on the situation, stating, “Gold’s pain is Bitcoin ETFs’ gain in the store of value smackdown.” He also suggested that there is a “decent chance” Bitcoin ETFs will surpass gold ETFs in AUM within two years.
In conclusion, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust has achieved a remarkable feat by reaching $10 billion in AUM in a relatively short period. The comparison with the performance of the first U.S. gold-backed ETF highlights the significant growth and popularity of Bitcoin ETFs.