Grayscale Bitcoin ETF saw its first inflow of funds, soaring 5% before the market opened
The latest data shows that Grayscale Bitcoin ETF achieved its first inflow of funds last Friday, causing its stock price to surge 5% in pre-market trading today.
This is an important milestone for Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). Since GBTC charges higher fees than its competitors, $17.46 billion of funds have flowed out since it switched from a trust to an easy-to-trade ETF in January.
Of course, some of the outflows are also related to the wave of bankruptcies in the digital cryptocurrency industry. Some companies that have gone bankrupt in the past two years have withdrawn funds from the fund to repay creditors.
Data from investment management company Farside Investors shows that GBTC had an inflow of $63 million last Friday. According to SoSoValue, the total net inflow of Bitcoin spot ETFs last Friday was $378 million.
Information on Grayscale's official website shows that GBTC's assets under management (AUM) are $18.08 billion. Grayscale's position as the largest spot bitcoin ETF provider is threatened by BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT.O), which manages $16.91 billion in assets.
Grayscale said in March that it would seek approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to spin off some of GBTC's assets into a new, lower-fee "Bitcoin Mini Trust" (BMT). The company has not yet determined the fees that BMT will charge.
Spot bitcoin ETFs provide investors with exposure to bitcoin without holding it directly. Bitcoin ETFs were approved by the SEC in January this year after being rejected for 10 years.
In addition to the bitcoin ETF, the SEC is currently soliciting public comments on proposed ETFs such as the Fidelity Ethereum Fund, the Grayscale Ethereum Trust and the Bitwise Ethereum Trust.
The SEC's deadline is to complete its review of the Ethereum ETF in late May. Previously, the SEC had postponed the approval deadline in March. Currently, the industry's optimism about the SEC's approval of these products has declined.
