Spot Bitcoin ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) are one of the biggest narratives and have changed the game in the cryptocurrency space over the past two years. With these investment products, people can participate in the cryptocurrency market without having to own digital assets directly.
Interestingly, one of the biggest winners—often overlooked—is the issuers, especially as the crypto industry has seen increased institutional acceptance since the launch of Bitcoin ETFs. According to the company’s CEO, BTC exchange-traded funds were not intended to become a major source of revenue for BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager.
BlackRock’s Bitcoin Funds Exceed Expectations
At Blockchain Conference 2025 in São Paulo on Friday, November 28, BlackRock’s Director of Business Development in Brazil, Cristiano Castro, told to the press that Bitcoin ETFs are the biggest source of income for their company. According to the CEO, this development came as a “big surprise” to the asset management company.
Castro said in a statement:
We were very optimistic when we launched, but we didn’t believe it would reach this scale. Just to give you an idea, it (IBIT in the US and IBIT39 in Brazil – reference asset names) came very close to $100 billion (in allocation).
This feat is significant for Bitcoin ETFs, especially considering that BlackRock offers more than 1,400 exchange-traded products globally and has a whopping $13.4 trillion in assets under management. The US-based Bitcoin Fund (ticker IBIT) has more than $70.7 billion in net assets, becoming the first ETF to reach the $70 billion mark (doing so in June 2025).
While the US Bitcoin ETF market has slowed somewhat, BlackRock’s IBIT continues to outperform other ETFs launched in recent years. As earlier reports have suggested, IBIT has managed to generate approximately $245 million in annual fees as of October 2025.
Bitcoin ETF outflows ‘perfectly normal’ – Castro
When asked about the recent outflows from BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF as the market leader’s value fell, the director said there was no surprise in the trend. “ETFs are very liquid and powerful instruments, and they serve precisely to enable people to allocate their capital and manage their cash flow,” noted Castro.
The director of BlackRock said that the withdrawals were expected, given that the product is largely owned by small investors, who are reactionary to price corrections. On Friday, the iShares Bitcoin Trust saw a net outflow of $113.72 million, bringing the weekly record to a negative $137.01 million and the fund’s fifth consecutive week of withdrawals.
Featured image from Getty Images, chart from TradingView
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