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Multinational bank BNP Paribas purchased shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), according to a Form 13F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
BNP Paribas purchased 1,030 shares of IBIT stock at $40.47 per share in the first quarter of 2024, according to the company’s 13F report filed on May 1. This equates to a total of $41,684.10. This is less than the value of a single stock. BitcoinAt current price.
BNP Paribas, Europe’s second-largest bank by assets, has allocated a relatively small portion of its investment portfolio to IBITs. Nonetheless, this is one of the first verified instances of a major financial institution purchasing shares of a spot Bitcoin ETF. This at least partially substantiates the argument that institutional investors will be attracted to Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
Institutional investment managers with at least $100 million in discretionary assets are required to file quarterly 13F reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Banks and fund managers are required to submit reports up to 45 days after the end of each quarter. This includes cases where foreign banks, such as BNP Paribas, trade in the U.S., such as purchasing ETFs from U.S. issuers.
A Goldman Sachs report released shortly after the U.S. SEC approved several spot Bitcoin ETFs in January warned that “the timing of market launches and demand from institutional investors may not be immediate.”
This claim was supported by Matt Hougan, CIO of cryptocurrency index fund manager Bitwise. He added, “In fact, most professional investors still can’t buy Bitcoin ETFs.” We plan to conduct an individual due diligence process over the next two years.”
Since its launch in January, the Bitcoin ETF has seen net inflows of $11.2 billion, per data from Farside Investors, despite outflows of over $17.4 billion from Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC).
In recent days, the Bitcoin ETF has seen steady outflows, with net outflows of over $563 million just yesterday. The U.S. Federal Reserve’s (Fed) decision to keep interest rates unchanged resulted in cash outflow, causing investors to avoid risky assets such as stocks and cryptocurrencies.
BNP Paribas’ decision to invest in Bitcoin ETF marks something of a turnaround.
In September 2022, Sandro Fieri, head of fund management group BNP Paribas Asset Management, said “we are not involved in cryptocurrencies and do not want to be involved,” adding that the firm had “not heard much interest” in cryptocurrencies. . Client-based cryptocurrency.
Edited by Stacey Elliott.
