BlackRock snaps up BTC as US spot ETFs see $507m inflow

BTC ETFs saw ~+$507m net inflow Feb. 25 as BlackRock bought thousands of BTC from Coinbase Prime, but BTC still slipped on profit‑taking.

BlackRock purchased a substantial amount of bitcoin during the strongest single-day inflow for U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds in two weeks, according to market data.

Data showed BlackRock transferred thousands of bitcoin to its iShares Bitcoin Trust wallets on Feb. 26, according to blockchain analytics firms. The transfers originated from Coinbase Prime hot wallets and occurred in several batches within the same hour, the data showed. Blockchain analytics firms shared logs showing multiple transfers of approximately 300 bitcoins to addresses linked to the iShares trust. The timestamp for these transfers was recorded at approximately 5:45 PM UTC.

BlackRock had purchased additional bitcoin days earlier and had transferred bitcoin to Coinbase the day before, according to transaction records. Market analysts tracked the activity as other ETFs reported outflows during the same period.

U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs recorded strong net inflows on Feb. 25, marking the highest one-day inflow in two weeks, according to data from SoSoValue. Total cumulative inflows have reached tens of billions of dollars across all issuers, the data showed. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust led inflows for the day. Fidelity’s bitcoin ETF, Grayscale’s trust and Bitwise also reported inflows, according to the data. Other issuers recorded smaller inflows, while some smaller ETFs reported no net flows that day.

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted the renewed inflows followed weeks of withdrawals. Balchunas stated the rise in interest was well timed for the market but that it remained unclear whether the trend would mark a sustained rebound.

Bitcoin traded near recent highs but declined that day, falling even as ETF inflows increased, according to market data. Charts showed bitcoin briefly declined during the trading session. On-chain data indicated recent profit-taking kept bitcoin below certain resistance levels, with demand slowing near that range and recovery attempts in February meeting resistance at similar levels, according to blockchain analysts.