According to a Bloomberg report, BlackRock and other asset managers are drawing Bitcoin whales to Wall Street.
In the U.S., large whales that have long held substantial amounts of Bitcoin have begun converting their spot BTC holdings into ETFs. BlackRock is leading this movement, and Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock’s Head of Digital Assets, stated that the company has already facilitated the conversion of more than $3 billion worth of Bitcoin into ETFs.
A regulatory change in July allowed major investors to transfer their Bitcoin into ETFs in exchange for fund shares. At that time, both the IRS and the SEC introduced rule changes permitting investors to directly convert their Bitcoin into ETFs without paying taxes.
Following this change, major Bitcoin holders started shifting their funds to Wall Street ETFs.
So far, BlackRock has completed over $3 billion in ETF conversions, while demand for Bitwise and Galaxy has also been rising.
Mitchnick declined to comment on the number of whale transactions under BlackRock’s IBIT ETF but said that greater regulatory clarity would likely boost volumes and encourage more participation from large banks.
He added that client demand varies — from investors who want to convert only 20% of their Bitcoin into ETFs to those looking to move entirely into traditional finance (TradFi).
