Spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States saw renewed investor activity, led by a significant increase in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust inflows. After a short period of outflows driven by geopolitical concerns and price fluctuations, a broad rebound emerged across most major bitcoin ETFs, indicating revived market appetite as the cryptocurrency traded below its most recent highs.
BlackRock leads inflows as ETF demand returns
Recent data showed that on Thursday, U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs collectively attracted $358.1 million in net inflows, reversing the losses of the previous two days. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust stood out by taking in $269.3 million, marking its best single-day performance over the last five weeks.
Fidelity Investments, a global financial services corporation with a long history in asset management, reported that its Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund followed with $53.3 million in inflows. Other issuers, including Bitwise Asset Management, ARK Invest in partnership with 21Shares, Franklin Templeton, and VanEck, also experienced a resurgence in investor interest, each recording inflows on the same day.
Year to date, BlackRock’s offering has drawn $1.5 billion in net new capital despite bitcoin’s price drop from levels near $97,000 in 2026 to approximately $72,100. Representatives for BlackRock have previously explained that their investor base tends to be focused on longer-term holdings rather than short-term trading strategies.
Looking back at the previous year, U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs closed out 2025 with $56.59 billion in accumulated net inflows. At present, their cumulative figure stands at $56.51 billion, leaving them about $80 million short of breaking even for 2026.
Morgan Stanley intensifies competition with new ETF launch
Morgan Stanley, a major player in global banking and wealth management, officially launched its spot bitcoin ETF, the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust (MSBT), earlier this week. The introduction of MSBT comes amid increasing demand for diversified exposure to digital assets among institutional and retail clients alike.
During its debut, MSBT generated $34 million in trading volume and attracted $30.6 million in net inflows. Amy Oldenburg, Head of Emerging Markets Equity at Morgan Stanley, characterized the results as the firm’s greatest opening day for any ETF it has introduced. The product imposes a 14 basis point management fee, which is lower than several competitors and could set off further fee-based competition in the rapidly evolving bitcoin ETF space.
According to Amy Oldenburg, Morgan Stanley’s new bitcoin ETF had the “best first day of trading for any of our ETFs” since the company entered the ETF market.
Despite the strong debut of MSBT, the broad U.S. spot bitcoin ETF segment recorded $94 million in net outflows earlier in the week, reflecting ongoing shifts among institutional participants. On the same day, BlackRock’s IBIT stood out by registering net inflows of $40.4 million, while products from Fidelity and ARK & 21Shares saw the largest redemptions. Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust also posted a decrease in assets.
Market observers are watching closely to see whether Morgan Stanley’s well-established wealth management platform—which oversees approximately $6 trillion in client assets and provides access to a vast network of financial advisors—will help the bank challenge established leaders in the bitcoin ETF field moving forward.
Analysts believe tighter fee competition and the distribution strengths of firms like Morgan Stanley are setting the stage for the next phase of the sector’s evolution. MSBT’s inflows in the coming weeks are expected to serve as a key indicator of traditional financial institutions’ potential influence in digital asset products.
