JP Morgan and Wells Fargo are the latest major global banks to announce investments in Bitcoin through Bitcoin Spot ETFs launched in January.
The two banks published 13F reports on May 10, revealing modest investments in Bitcoin Spot ETFs. JP Morgan invested $731,246 in BlackRock (IBIT), Bitwise (BITB), Fidelity (FBTC) and Grayscale (GBTC) Bitcoin ETFs, of which the majority – $477,425 – was invested in IBIT. Meanwhile, Wells Fargo reported a $141,817 investment in Grayscale's GBTC in the first quarter.
Previously, BNP Paribas and BNY Mellon also invested in Bitcoin Spot ETFs, showing a growing trend among traditional financial institutions despite modest exposure. Furthermore, other major banks, including Morgan Stanley and UBS, have signaled their intention to allow customers to invest in Bitcoin Spot ETFs. However, these two banks have not announced a direct investment in Bitcoin to date.
Industry experts, including BlackRock's head of digital assets, believe that the trend of institutional capital flowing into Bitcoin Spot ETFs is just beginning and that volumes are expected to increase sharply as investors Sophisticated investors, with methodical strategies and large resources such as sovereign wealth funds, join the game.
BlackRock leads the wave
BlackRock announced a $6.6 million investment in its own IBIT fund in a 13F report on May 10. The firm's strategy follows that of other Bitcoin Spot ETF issuers who have also invested in their own funds. Ark Invest holds $206.4 million in its ARKB fund, while Van Eck holds $98,000 in its HODL fund.
BlackRock's latest investment comes alongside IBIT's solid performance. The fund has the highest cumulative inflows among the Bitcoin Spot ETFs at $15,490 and is the second largest Bitcoin Spot ETF in terms of total assets under management. BlackRock's IBIT also set a new record when it reached 10 billion USD AUM. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas commented on the trend: “The record for an ETF reaching $10 billion in assets is held by JEPQ, which took 647 trading days… IBIT achieved it in 49 days, FBTC for 77 days.”
TradFi capital flows into Bitcoin
Chicago-based hedge fund CTC Alternative Strategies reported a $27.7 million investment in IBIT on May 9. Other financial institutions and companies that recently announced investments in Bitcoin Spot ETFs include Hightower Advisors, US Bancorp, SouthState, Susquehanna International Group, Burkett Financial Services and Legacy Wealth Asset Management.
The above companies are some of hundreds of businesses that have made similar disclosures in their 13F filings since Bitcoin Spot ETFs were launched in January. According to data from Fintel, more than 240 companies have invested in IBIT, while more than 130 companies have invested in FBTC. More than 467 companies invested in Grayscale's GBTC, which existed before its conversion to an ETF in January.
