BlackRock Faces $1B Bitcoin ETF Outflow as Tokenized Fund Hits $2.5B
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Record IBIT Dark Pool Trade Draws Attention
Market attention intensified after a massive $1.29 billion block trade involving IBIT shares crossed Nasdaq through a dark pool transaction on Tuesday.
According to Bloomberg ETF analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart, the trade involved approximately 29.2 million IBIT shares sold at around $43.16 per share.
Dark pool trades are privately negotiated transactions executed outside public exchanges, typically used by institutions seeking to move large positions without disrupting markets.
Balchunas described the transaction as one of the largest Bitcoin ETF trades ever recorded, noting that the market “absorbed it well” despite the size of the order.
Galaxy Digital Head of Research Alex Thorn called it the largest dark pool Bitcoin ETF trade he had personally observed. Some analysts interpreted the transaction as a sign of institutional de-risking amid broader macroeconomic uncertainty and declining appetite for risk assets.
The trade coincided with a sharp intraday decline in Bitcoin’s price. Data showed BTC fell nearly 1.5% within minutes of the block trade, then extended losses later in the day.
Institutional sentiment toward Bitcoin ETFs has softened in recent months. Jane Street reportedly reduced its Bitcoin ETF holdings by roughly 70% during the first quarter of 2026, while Goldman Sachs also trimmed exposure.
BlackRock Expands Tokenized Asset Push
Even as Bitcoin ETF flows weakened, BlackRock continued advancing its broader blockchain strategy.
The asset manager recently filed paperwork for another tokenized investment product with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, while its existing tokenized fund business surpassed $2.5 billion in assets under management.
The milestone reinforces BlackRock CEO Larry Fink’s increasingly vocal support for tokenization, which he has repeatedly described as the future of capital markets.
Tokenized funds use blockchain technology to represent traditional financial assets digitally, enabling faster settlement and potentially broader market access.
Industry analysts say BlackRock’s continued investment in tokenization suggests the firm remains committed to digital assets even as Bitcoin faces cyclical volatility.
For now, market watchers are closely monitoring ETF flows as a key indicator of institutional demand. Analysts say Bitcoin’s ability to hold above critical support levels despite multi-billion-dollar outflows may indicate that the recent selling reflects temporary risk reduction rather than a structural collapse in institutional crypto adoption.
This article has been published in ccn.com via Yahoo News.
BlackRock Faces $1B Bitcoin ETF Outflow as Tokenized Fund Hits $2.5B
BlackRock’s $1.01 billion Bitcoin sale was driven by investor redemptions from its IBIT ETF, not by the firm abandoning Bitcoin. A record $1.29 billion IBIT ...
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