BlackRock Bitcoin ETF records biggest inflow day since March at $523M

BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) notched its biggest day of inflows in over four months, with over $523 million entering the fund on July 23.

The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) scooped up 7,759 Bitcoin on July 22 — worth just over $523 million at the time of writing — according to Hey Apollo data cited by its co-founder, Julian Fahrer, in a July 23 post on X.

The July 22 inflows bring the total assets under management for IBIT to 333,000 BTC, worth around $22 billion at current prices. It marks the seventh-largest day of record for inflows into IBIT in United States dollars.IBIT witnessed its largest single day of inflows on March 18, when $849 million worth of BTC was added to the fund.

The second-largest day on record occurred on March 5, when the fund saw $788 million in inflows, according to Farside Investors data.

Revolut secures UK banking license after three-year wait

Revolut, the London-based fintech company, finally secured a banking license in the United Kingdom after a protracted three-year regulatory approval process. This significant milestone, announced on July 25, marks a pivotal moment for the company as it strengthens and solidifies its position in its home market.

The UK’s Prudential Regulation Authority granted the license with certain restrictions, allowing Revolut to gradually build out its banking operations before a full-scale launch.

Nik Storonsky, the CEO of Revolut, commented on this landmark event:

We are incredibly proud to reach this important milestone in the journey of the company and we will ensure we deliver on making Revolut the bank of choice for UK customers.”

The company was founded in 2015 and has rapidly grown its customer base, with nine million registered users in the UK and over 45 million globally. It is supported in 35 countries around the world. 

Revolut was valued at $33 billion during a fundraising round in 2021. Currently, the firm is in discussions to sell shares worth about $500 million, potentially increasing its overall valuation to approximately $40 billion.

India cracks down on darknet drug deals using crypto tracking

India’s Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), the country’s nodal drug law enforcement and intelligence agency, is actively monitoring cryptocurrency payments on the darknet as part of its ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking in the country.

During a Parliamentary discussion on July 24, Nityanand Rai, the minister of state for home affairs, revealed India’s current strategy to reduce the import and inter-state movement of narcotic drugs.

According to data from NCB, the use of cryptocurrencies in drug crimes has been inconsistent over the last five years. However, the number of cases of drug seizure involving darknet and cryptocurrencies has seen a steady increase since 2022.

Rai detailed 13 plans of action against the growing problem of drug trafficking and narco-terrorism in India, two of which targeted the misuse of cryptocurrencies. He said:

A Special Task Force on Darknet and Crypto Currency has been constituted to monitor suspicious transactions related to drugs on Darknet.”

 

Spot Ethereum ETFs post $107M net inflows on first day

United States Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) posted net inflows of $106.6 million on their first day of trading despite massive outflows from Grayscale’s freshly converted Ethereum Trust.

BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust ETF led the pack with $266.5 million of inflows, followed closely by the Bitwise Ethereum ETF with $204 million in net inflows. The Fidelity Ethereum Fund ETF came in third with $71.3 million.

The inflows to the “newborn” spot Ether ETFs were enough to overcome bleeding from the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE), which saw outflows of $484.9 million on the day, amounting to 5% of the once $9 billion fund.

ETHE was launched by Grayscale in 2017, allowing institutional investors to buy ETH. However, it imposed a six-month lock-up period on all investments. Its conversion to a spot ETF means that investors can more easily sell their shares, which could explain the high day-one outflows.In January, spot Bitcoin ETFs were marred by a similar dynamic with the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which saw over $17.5 billion in outflows following the launch of the 11 spot BTC ETFs.

Asset manager says Trump admin may make Bitcoin strategic reserve asset

Asset manager Bryan Courchesne recently appeared on CNBC to discuss Bitcoin’s potential to become a strategic reserve asset of the United States government under a potential future Trump administration.

According to the asset manager, adopting Bitcoin as a reserve asset would be difficult but not impossible. Courchesne pointed to the Department of Justice’s vast holdings of 200,000 BTC, making the U.S. government the largest holder of Bitcoin behind its pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto.

Courchesne explained that the Department of Justice could simply transfer the Bitcoin to the United States Department of the Treasury, paving the way for the Treasury to begin accumulating and holding the scarce asset long-term.

Speculation that Bitcoin may become a global reserve asset or a strategic U.S. Treasury asset surged following former President Donald Trump’s announcement of support for the digital asset industry amid mounting worldwide debt and monetary inflation.Trump’s pick of J.D. Vance, a 39-year-old Bitcoin holder, as his running mate also fueled speculation that a future Trump administration could mean a new era for crypto, in which Bitcoin becomes fully integrated into the current financial system.

Winners and Losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $67,636, Ether (ETH) at $3,260 and XRP at $0.59. The total market cap is at $2.41 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Helium (HNT) at 20.43%, SATS (1000SATS) at 11.81% and Pyth Network (PYTH) at 10.73%.

The top three altcoin losers of the week are Lido DAO (LDO) at 19.39%, Worldcoin (WLD) at 17.14% and Mog Coin (MOG) at 16.15%.

Source : Cointelegraph - Jul 28, 2024