Bitcoin ETF competition continues to heat up with Grayscale and BlackRock vying for the largest market share over the past two weeks. Both giants are in a fierce race to claim the title of the largest Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider in the US. Recent developments indicate that the gap between them is closing.
Gap in Bitcoin ETF Market Narrows to $1.5 Billion
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) currently holds the lead with $18.7 billion in assets under management (AUM). However, recent withdrawals from GBTC have paved the way for BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) to eye the leadership position.
BlackRock’s IBIT fund, with $17.2 billion in AUM, is very close to overtaking GBTC. This supports Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas’s prediction that IBIT might surpass GBTC by the end of April. Although this prediction is not yet confirmed, the narrowing gap is evident.
IBIT Poses as a Significant Competitor
There are signs that IBIT is progressing towards its goal of overtaking GBTC. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Eric Balchunas commented on Twitter that GBTC’s leadership is weakening and IBIT is a significant competitor. However, a recent slowdown in BlackRock’s IBIT fund strengthens the possibility that Balchunas’s prediction might not fully materialize.
Since its inception, IBIT has not experienced any withdrawals, which is noteworthy. In contrast, Grayscale’s GBTC has seen net withdrawals since its establishment. This shows that BlackRock’s IBIT fund is maintaining a strong stance in the market.
Gap Halved in Two Weeks
Despite both funds experiencing significant inflows and outflows recently, the gap between them has been observed to decrease significantly. In the two weeks since Balchunas’s prediction, the difference between IBIT and GBTC has nearly halved from $2.3 billion to $1.5 billion. This indicates that BlackRock’s IBIT fund is making determined strides to overtake GBTC.
The competition among Bitcoin ETFs is intensifying, and Grayscale and BlackRock are engaged in a determined struggle to capture the largest share of the market. Looking at the Bitcoin price, we see it has risen back above $61,000. BTC was at $61,220 at the time of writing this article.
