BlackRock's Bitcoin ETP Lands in Europe

BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, is set to launch a Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe, marking its first such offering outside North America. The move comes after the overwhelming success of its iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in the US, which has amassed over $57 billion in net assets since its launch in January 2024. BlackRock's European Bitcoin ETP is expected to be domiciled in Switzerland, with marketing set to begin as early as this month. This strategic move signals BlackRock's confidence in the future of Bitcoin and its commitment to meeting growing investor demand for cryptocurrency exposure.

BlackRock's expansion into Europe reflects a broader trend of international expansion for its cryptocurrency products. In January, the firm launched a new Bitcoin ETF on the Cboe Canada, allowing Canadian investors to access its flagship US spot Bitcoin fund. US Bitcoin ETFs saw more than $35 billion in aggregate net inflows in 2024, with crypto analysts at Steno Research expecting another roughly $48 billion worth of net inflows in 2025. Investment bank JPMorgan has observed a systemic shift as more investors turn to Bitcoin as a hedge against geopolitical risk and inflation, citing record capital inflow into crypto markets.

In a separate development, BlackRock has been buying the Ethereum dip to custody funds for its ETH-based exchange-traded fund (ETF). According to the firm's data, it picked up 100,535 ETH – worth about $276.2 million at the time of writing – for its iShares ETHA product. BlackRock holds a total of 1,352,934 ETH worth roughly $3.71 billion, with its total assets under management reported to be around $11.5 trillion in October of last year. Meanwhile, the President of the United States' crypto project World Liberty Financial (WLFI) is also accumulating Ethereum, with blockchain "de-anonymizing" platform Arkham reporting that WLFI purchased over $307 million worth of ETH and Wrapped Bitcoin (wBTC) and sent it to Coinbase Prime for management purposes.

Crypto trader Michaël van de Poppetold his 768,800 followers on the social media platform X that Bitcoin (BTC)