To say that spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) exceeded expectations in their first year on the market is an understatement at best. Instead, it might be more accurate to say that they have shocked the industry to its core.
“How Great Was the First Year for Bitcoin ETFs?” Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst James Seyffart wrote on X. “MASSIVE.”
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) had the most successful launch in the history of US ETFs, accumulating more than $52.3 billion in assets in its first year (a combination of large inflows and the sharp rise in the price of bitcoin), according to Seyffart.
Three of the other spot bitcoin ETFs, Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund ( FBTC ), ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF ( ARKB ), and Bitwise Bitcoin ETF ( BITB ) — were also among the top 20 US ETF launches of all time.
The last twelve months in crypto were “instant,” said Matt Horne, chief digital asset strategist at Fidelity Investments. In fact, FBTC is the fund management giant’s largest exchange-traded product, with nearly $19 billion in assets under management, according to the company’s website.
“While we were optimistic for the launch of the bitcoin ETPs, demand exceeded our expectations across all customer segments, including retail investors, advisors, institutions and beyond,” Horne said. “Given that these products have experienced tremendous asset growth and now have a year of performance, we expect to see continued adoption across both advisor and institutional client segments.”
Where to go from here?
While some hedge funds or pension funds allocated modest amounts of money to spot ETFs, the bulk of the approach came from non-professional investors. However, that may change.
“The record flows occurred despite some wire houses, financial advisors and some US financial firms banning employees from holding bitcoin or altcoins in their personal portfolios,” Mark Connors, founder and investment strategist at Risk Dimensions, told CoinDesk.
“With more support from the RIA/advisors and wire houses likely and the tailwind of the price, the 2025’s flow will easily surpass the 2024’s,” he added.
According to Nate Geraci, president of the ETF Store, 2025 could be “The Year of Crypto ETFs.” He predicts that over 50 more crypto ETFs will be approved under new leadership at the US Securities and Exchange Commission, including spot Solana and XRP funds, as well as option-based and equity-based products.
“Gary Gensler always referred to crypto as ‘the Wild West,'” Geraci wrote in a post on ETF Educator. “Under the Trump administration, I think that’s exactly what we’re getting from an ETF perspective.”
