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The world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, has announced it will launch a new exchange-traded Bitcoin product in the European market. The iShares Bitcoin ETP will be backed by physically held Bitcoin. The fund, which will have the tracker IB1T, is set to launch with a 0.15% total expense ratio, although this will rise to 0.25% when the discounted period ends.
The fund follows the success of BlackRock’s US-based Bitcoin ETFs. The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF has just over $50 billion in assets under management, more than twice the size of the next largest fund of its kind.
Crypto Investments
As well as Bitcoin maximalists, the crypto investment market also sees many investors looking for the latest crypto project likely to turn a profit (source: https://cryptonews.com/kr/cryptocurrency/upcoming-binance-listings/). According to cryptocurrency writer Sanghee Yun, new coins are especially appealing because if they receive a Binance listing, their price can rise substantially.
Exchange Traded Funds
It may not have been Satoshi’s aim when he launched Bitcoin, but the world’s largest cryptocurrency’s primary use today is as an investment, and it has encouraged similar use of the entire crypto market.
And, in recent years, the market and investors have been calling out for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to agree to the launch of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds. In January 2024, after years of legal wrangling and bitter disputes, the SEC finally conceded defeat at the hands of US courts.
Virtually within a few hours, the products were made available to investors. BlackRock has taken the lead, and it touts its ETFs as offering greater exposure to cryptocurrency but in a “familiar and efficient wrapper”. The company’s products attracted more than $105 billion in assets in their first year, and the market was led predominantly by the IBIT ETF, which recently announced $125 billion in investment.
The successful launch and offering of Bitcoin ETFs led to the launch of Ether ETFs in July this year. The market continues to debate which cryptocurrency is most likely to be the next to enjoy this treatment, with Solana and Ripple being among the most likely options.
Market Reaction
Bitcoin prices certainly reacted well to the launch of ETFs. At the beginning of January 2024, Bitcoin was trading at $44,000. Two months later, its price had jumped to $66,000, and Bitcoin would go on to reach $100,000 by the end of 2024, although some of that price rise can also be attributed to Donald Trump’s about-turn to become staunchly pro-crypto and his subsequent election victory in November of that year. BTC prices have dropped back a little since that date, and the first cryptocurrency is now trading at just over $85,000.
BlackRock On Bitcoin
BlackRock is clearly onboard the Bitcoin boat. In January 2025, the company’s CEO, Larry Fink, spoke at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He said he was in talks with wealth funds about what level of Bitcoin investment is best and touted figures between 2% and 5%.
He said, “If everyone adopted that conversation, it would be $500,000, $600,000, $700,000 per Bitcoin.”
Further, BlackRock launched its own tokenized fund in 2024. BUIDL was developed on the Ethereum blockchain and has since become multichain, allowing investors to earn yields on their dollars through tokenization. The token was created in conjunction with Coinbase, one of the world’s largest exchanges, and it has a $5 million minimum investment.
European Market Entry
BlackRock is further enhancing its Bitcoin products by entering the European market. The move had been rumoured at the beginning of February. At the time, BlackRock declined to comment, but it has now confirmed that the new product will launch on Xetra and Euronext Paris with the ticker IB1T. It will also launch on Euronext Amsterdam as BTCN.
BlackRock is offering a 10 basis point fee waiver, giving it an expense ratio of 0.15%. It won’t be the first Bitcoin ETF in European markets. But the initial fee waiver means that it will be the cheapest when it launches. Even when the discounted period ends, the 0.25% fee will put it on the same level as CoinShares International Ltd’s fund.
Investor Benefits
A lot of people are interested in the potential of investing in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. However, the need to use crypto wallets, exchanges, and custodial services puts a lot of potential investors off. An ETF enables those people to enjoy investment in a potentially lucrative asset without the hassle.
Further Rises Ahead?
And Bitcoin does have the potential for profits, as it has shown during its comparatively brief history. It launched in 2009, with a value so low it was considered to be worth $0.00.
By the end of 2010, it had surpassed $0.10, and by the middle of 2011, it was already worth nearly $30. It would go on to surpass the $100 mark in April 2013 and then the $200 point in October of the same year. Incredibly, BTC would surpass the $1,000 mark by the end of November.
Although prices floundered for the next few years, 2017 was another milestone year for the asset. It started the year at just above $1,000 but ended the year at $13,850, having tipped $16,000 at one point.
Many thought the bubble had well and truly burst in 2018, with prices dropping from $13,000 to a low of just above $3,000, but by the end of the decade, it had not only recovered but gone on to surpass a price of $20,000.
European Market Significance
On the face of it, BlackRock’s introduction of a new BTC ETF in the European market isn’t that big a deal. Similar ETFs have traded in the bloc for years, and the European ETF market is substantially smaller than that of the US.
However, BlackRock is a significant player in asset management, and it is clearly committed to offering Bitcoin and crypto products to customers around the world. It will bring more investment into the market and help bring some stability to cryptocurrency assets.
*This article was paid for. Cryptonomist did not write the article or test the platform.
