Bitcoin ETF Market Sees Surge in BlackRock Buying

BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has seen a rebound in Bitcoin buying by its clients, with a staggering $273.2 million worth of the cryptocurrency being purchased over two days. This significant surge in buying comes after an earlier sell-off of $63.6 million, which has left the average fund dollar sitting deeply underwater.

The buying frenzy by BlackRock’s clients has led the firm to close in on the entire US spot Bitcoin ETF market this week. This development is all the more remarkable considering that the average fund buyer is now down 22% since launch, according to a report by Hedgeye based on Bloomberg Intelligence data.

The gross cost basis of all US spot Bitcoin ETF purchases stands at a staggering $82,249, while the current price of Bitcoin is around $62,907. This represents a 22% shortfall, which widens to roughly 24% when measured against the current price. The scale of the unrealized losses is even more striking, with aggregate losses hitting $16.33 billion on July 20, peaking at an $86.32 billion gain on October 6, 2025, the day Bitcoin set its $126,080 record.

How the BlackRock Bitcoin Buying Rebound Came About

The surge in buying by BlackRock’s clients is largely driven by the demand for the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which took in a net $209.6 million across the four sessions from July 27 to July 30, according to Farside Investors. The full 13-fund complex took in $203.9 million, with every other fund combined coming out slightly negative.

The daily split shows the same concentration, with IBIT supplying $183.38 million of the $233.13 million that arrived on July 30, or 79% of the total. This was the largest single-day inflow since July 6, according to SoSoValue records.

Arkham’s on-chain tally reconciles exactly with those creations, with IBIT redeeming $8.8 million and $54.8 million on July 27 and July 28, producing the $63.6 million of selling Arkham logged. Creations of $89.8 million and $183.4 million followed, matching its $273.2 million figure.

The underlying mechanism driving the BlackRock Bitcoin buying rebound is the share creations by authorized participants rather than proprietary positions taken by the firm. Rising demand forces the fund to buy Bitcoin, while redemptions force it to sell. This mechanism cuts both ways, and IBIT has led in both directions, absorbing $202.5 million and $212.2 million of outflows on July 23 and July 24, the two worst sessions of the month.

BlackRock’s commercial reasons for wanting the bleeding stopped are clear, given that IBIT holds $47.86 billion, or 61% of the $78.76 billion across all US spot Bitcoin ETFs. The firm issues formal Bitcoin allocation guidance of 1% to 2% of institutional portfolios, and chief executive Larry Fink told CNBC on July 15 that the crypto leverage washout ended.

Flow data has since moved his way, though not far, with June draining $4.51 billion in the worst month on record since the funds launched in January 2024, and July recovering $438 million of it. Cumulative net inflows across the complex stand at $51.59 billion, with IBIT alone having drawn $60.60 billion, a gap explained by Grayscale’s $27.42 billion of redemptions from GBTC.

One issuer now accounts for all of the industry’s net growth, and its newest clients are buying at prices its earlier ones never saw. The scale of the unrealized losses is even more striking, with aggregate losses hitting $16.33 billion on July 20, peaking at an $86.32 billion gain on October 6, 2025, the day Bitcoin set its $126,080 record.

The longer arc is starker, with IBIT holdings peaking near 823,000 BTC in mid-May, then falling by roughly 90,000 BTC through early July before flattening near 730,000. The mechanism driving the BlackRock Bitcoin buying rebound is the share creations by authorized participants rather than proprietary positions taken by the firm.

The Average ETF Buyer Is Still Down 22%

Research firm Hedgeye published Bloomberg Intelligence data on July 28 showing how badly the typical fund buyer has fared since launch. The average U.S. Bitcoin ETF buyer is now down -22%, according to the report. This significant shortfall is a stark reminder of the risks involved in investing in the cryptocurrency market.