In a significant milestone for cryptocurrency ETFs (exchange-traded funds), Bitcoin ETFs offered by renowned asset managers BlackRock and Fidelity have accumulated more assets in their first month than any US-launched ETF in the past three decades. Data provided by Bloomberg Intelligence reveals that BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) each attracted over $3 billion during their initial 17 trading days.

Eric Balchunas, an ETF analyst at Bloomberg, commented on this achievement, noting that IBIT and FBTC have distinguished themselves from the over 5,500 ETFs launched in the last 30 years. He emphasized the significance of this feat, especially considering that many ETFs on the list were backed by a single investor, whereas BlackRock and Fidelity’s ETFs experienced daily inflows since their inception—a phenomenon Balchunas described as "truly unprecedented."

Several other Bitcoin ETFs also made it onto the prestigious list. The ARK 21Share’s spot Bitcoin ETF and the Bitwise Bitcoin Fund secured the 20th and 22nd positions, respectively, while the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF, launched as a futures product in October 2021, claimed the seventh spot.

Balchunas pointed out that the dataset excluded ETFs that underwent conversion, such as Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), and approximately 100 mutual funds that transitioned into ETFs. He acknowledged that outflows from Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust might have affected the performance of Bitcoin ETFs. However, he cautioned against underestimating the impact of competition, as the simultaneous launch of multiple ETFs prompted more aggressive marketing efforts.

The debut performance of IBIT and FBTC is also remarkable when compared to the largest ETFs by flow in 2024. According to Bloomberg's data, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF ranks fifth, while FBTC closely follows in eighth place. Only three broad index funds tracking the S&P 500 and Vanguard’s Total Stock Market ETF have surpassed IBIT in terms of flow.