U.S.-listed bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw $4.6 billion worth of shares trading on the first day of listing on Thursday.
The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which converted into an ETF, saw about $2.3 billion in volume, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Meantime, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust—IBIT— saw over $1 billion change hands.
Still, it’s hard to compare Thursday’s activity to any other day in ETF history. Typically, only one fund that tracks a new asset class begins trading on a single day. It’s unprecedented to see over 10 nearly identical funds all begin at once. But even singling in on one ETF indicates the sheer magnitude of trading.
Trading volume doesn’t indicate buying or selling or investor inflows. Because of the way the funds settle trades, net flows into or out of the products probably won’t be known until at least Friday.
When the initial Bitcoin futures fund began trading in 2021, it saw turnover of almost $1 billion during the entire first day. At the time, the futures fund debut was the second-most heavily traded fund on record.
Bitcoin
