In January 2024, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the issuance of Bitcoin spot ETFs, and shortly thereafter, several such products were available. Professional investors managing more than $100 million had to disclose their holdings in the first quarter. It was revealed that numerous institutions had purchased shares in BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF. BlackRock itself also invested in two conventional funds.
In the USA, institutional investors managing assets of at least 100 million USD are required to disclose their investments quarterly by submitting Form 13F in accordance with the regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Not only are they required to report their stock holdings, but also their investments in other financial products. Recently, the relevant forms for the first quarter of 2024 were made publicly accessible. What's special about this: it is the first quarter in which professional investors were able to invest in Bitcoin spot ETFs, as these were only approved by the SEC in January.
It became apparent that many investment firms, particularly in the case of the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) by BlackRock, have made significant investments. The American investment company itself also added shares of its Bitcoin ETF to the portfolios of two conventional funds. According to "Cointelegraph," more than 600 firms disclosed significant investments in Bitcoin spot ETFs through their 13F filings for the first quarter of 2024. As of the filing deadline on March 31, they collectively held Bitcoin ETF shares valued at around $3.5 billion. Notable banks among these Bitcoin investors, according to the news site, include Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, and UBS, as well as hedge funds like Millennium Management.
The heading can be translated into English as:
"The iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) was evidently particularly popular among institutional investors: BlackRock's Bitcoin spot ETF had more than 400 reported holders by the end of the quarter. For the first 13F season of IBIT, that's incredible and surpasses every record, wrote Bloomberg ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas on the microblogging platform X. He compared the iShares Bitcoin Trust and other Bitcoin ETFs in his post with other new ETFs, saying that even 20 holders for a newly launched ETF are extremely rare and a damn big deal.
But not only other institutions picked up BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF. The world's largest asset manager itself also brought the cryptocurrency into the portfolios of two of its funds in the first quarter. According to a filing with the SEC, both the Strategic Income Opportunities Fund (BSIIX) and the Strategic Global Bond Fund (MAWIX) now hold shares of the iShares Bitcoin Trust. Both funds are managed by teams led by Rick Rieder, the company's CIO for global fixed income, and are primarily focused on bonds.
Here is the translation of the heading:
"This is how the Strategic Income Opportunities Fund (BSIIX) bought 88,000 IBIT shares in the first quarter for approximately 3.667 million US dollars according to the SEC form. However, by the end of the quarter, BSIIX's Bitcoin bet had lost some value and was worth 3.561 million US dollars as of the reporting date. The Strategic Global Bond Fund (MAWIX) apparently had a bit more luck with the timing of its entry. Between January and March, it acquired 12,000 IBIT shares for 432,600 US dollars. By the end of the quarter, the value of this holding had increased to 485,640 US dollars."
Note: Since the provided text is lengthy and descriptive, it doesn't seem to be a typical "heading." Ensure correctness when confirming the context in which this translation will be applied.
Considering the fact that the BSIIX manages approximately $37.4 billion and the MAWIX approximately $776.4 million, the shares in the Bitcoin ETF make up only a small fraction of the portfolios of both funds. Nevertheless, this step could further drive the mass adoption of the largest cryptocurrency, as its inclusion in the two BlackRock funds makes it available to customers who are not explicitly seeking a crypto investment.
