On Tuesday, a staggering $1.3 billion sale took place in BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, causing an immediate drop in Bitcoin’s price. According to analysts, an anonymous investor offloaded 29.2 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) through a hidden trading venue at 14:30 UTC.
Massive sale impacts market
The transaction was executed on a “dark pool,” a private marketplace where institutional investors can trade large blocks of assets without immediate public disclosure. TradingView data showed that following the sale, Bitcoin’s price dropped 1.5% in just 10 minutes, falling from $77,875 to $76,720.
The selling pressure persisted throughout the rest of the day, with Bitcoin eventually sliding to $75,600 about twelve hours later. By the end of the day, Bitcoin recorded an overall loss of 2.8%.
The sale of 29.2 million shares in BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF marked one of the largest single dark pool trades ever seen in the market. Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy Digital, emphasized that he had never witnessed a dark pool transaction of this magnitude before.
Consistent ETF outflows
Spot Bitcoin ETFs in the US have now experienced net outflows for eight consecutive trading days. On Tuesday alone, outflows totaled $333.6 million, with $192.4 million attributed to IBIT. Since May 14, more than $2 billion has been withdrawn from Bitcoin ETFs overall.
During this period, institutional demand for Bitcoin ETFs appears to have waned. This trend signals that new capital entering the market now lags behind the volume being pulled out.
| ETF Name | Tuesday Net Outflow ($) | Total Last 8 Days Outflow ($) |
|---|---|---|
| IBIT (BlackRock) | 192,400,000 | No data |
| All US Bitcoin ETFs | 333,600,000 | 2,000,000,000+ |
Mini glossary: A dark pool is a private exchange where large investors can buy or sell sizable amounts of assets without their trades affecting the public market. Transactions are typically reported in aggregate to market participants after they occur.
Institutions scale back positions
Institutional selling has also emerged at major financial companies. US market maker Jane Street slashed its Bitcoin ETF holdings by around 70% during Q1, while Goldman Sachs trimmed its own position by 10%.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas observed that the 29.2 million-share order sold in IBIT on Tuesday was an astonishing 22 times larger than the day’s next biggest sale.
Bitcoin ETFs move closer to traditional markets
Traditionally, Bitcoin has stood apart from conventional finance, but in recent times, US-listed ETF products have drawn more interest from institutional investors. This shift has made cryptocurrency prices more closely track US equity markets, leading to sharper and faster swings.
