The total holdings of the new U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs launched in January have reached 909,700 BTC.
In a post on X on Aug. 13, Bloomberg’s senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas compared the figures of each fund with the BTC holdings of corporations and even the founder of the asset Satoshi Nakamoto.
“Didn’t realize US ETFs are on track to pass Satoshi in Bitcoin held in October.”
Bitcoin ETF Flows Turn Positive
Satoshi allegedly holds around 1.1 million BTC, though this figure remains a source of debate and has not been officially confirmed. Nevertheless, the combined holdings of spot Bitcoin ETFs are likely to exceed one million in the next couple of months.
“BlackRock alone is already number 3 and on pace to be number 1 late next year and will likely stay there for a very long time,” exclaimed Balchunas.
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) holds 347,767 BTC with a current market value of around $21 billion.
BitMEX Research pointed out that Coinbase holds around two million BTC, but Balchunas replied, stating that the figures don’t include custodians – “We would never count a custodian in an asset ranking.”
Tolou Capital Management founder Spencer Hakimian commented:
“People underestimate how reluctant institutions were to own Bitcoin on exchanges. Owning via ETF is a game changer. Allows risk averse institutions to own Bitcoin finally. Game changer.”
On Aug. 12, spot Bitcoin ETF flows flipped positive with a total aggregate inflow of $28 million.
Ark 21Shares (ARKB) led the pack with an inflow of $35.4 million, followed by BlackRock (IBIT) with $13.4 million. There was a minor inflow of $7.9 million into Grayscales Mini Bitcoin Trust (BTC), but its primary fund (GBTC) continued to outflow, losing $11.8 million for the day.
Ethereum ETFs Inflow Again
Ether-based spot ETFs also had a good day with an aggregate inflow of $4.9 million, reversing a three trading day trend of outflows.
Fidelity’s FETH led with an inflow of $4 million, while Bitwise (ETHW) had $2.9 million. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) had a zero flow day.
Grayscale’s (ETHE) outflows halted on Monday, and there was a zero flow for the first time since the products were launched on July 23.
Meanwhile, ETH markets recovered strongly, with the asset gaining 6.4% on the day to top $2,700 during the Tuesday morning Asian trading session.
