IBIT Beats VOO with a 71% Return
BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has posted a cumulative 71% return since launching in January 2024, according to Bloomberg data and a September 1 post on X from BlackRock senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) returned 66% over that stretch. IBIT got there the hard way. Balchunas called its price action a "roller coaster," marked by sharp swings. VOO moved along a far calmer path.
How Spot Bitcoin ETFs Got Approved
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs in 2024, ending a decade of rejections. IBIT started trading that year. It now holds $61.4 billion in assets, more than any other Bitcoin ETF. Fidelity's Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund ranks second, with nearly $11 billion under management. BlackRock manages over $15 trillion in assets. When it filed its spot Bitcoin ETF application in 2023, the move shook the crypto market. IBIT gives traditional investors a direct way to gain exposure to Bitcoin, and it trades more heavily each day than similar ETFs.
ETF Inflows and Bitcoin's Price Moves
Money moved back into ETFs in August. Between August 17 and 27, investors poured more than $2.8 billion into the funds, the biggest inflow since October last year, when Bitcoin reached its all-time high. Bitcoin briefly climbed to $81,281 last week, then pulled back on Friday. Its latest price was $77,539, down nearly 1% over 24 hours. Still, Bitcoin is up nearly 30% for the past month.