Despite the price decline, the world’s largest asset manager reaffirms its long-term view on bitcoin.
BlackRock has included its spot Bitcoin ETF among its three main investment themes for 2025. The decision to promote the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) as a priority theme for the year underscores the global asset manager’s confidence in the asset, despite a price decline of more than 4% since the start of the year.
IBIT was positioned alongside two more traditional financial instruments: the iShares 0–3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) and the iShares Top 20 U.S. Stocks ETF (TOPT).
Since January, IBIT has attracted more than $25 billion in capital inflows, ranking sixth among all ETFs for new investments in 2025.
Nate Geraci, president of NovaDius Wealth Management, commented:
“It’s easy to frame this as BlackRock simply promoting its highest-revenue product. But I see it more as the firm doubling down on its conviction that bitcoin belongs in diversified portfolios.”
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas echoed a similar view, noting that if the ETF “can do $25 billion in a bad year, imagine the flow potential in a good year.”
Geraci also pointed out that BlackRock has other ETFs with stronger performance and higher fees, such as its gold fund IAU. Highlighting a product that has underperformed in 2025 is unusual in the asset management industry, where firms typically promote their best-performing funds.
“If the objective were purely revenue generation, BlackRock has no shortage of ETFs with significantly higher fees that it could emphasize instead,” he said. “Asset managers aren’t typically in the business of spotlighting underperforming products, particularly when they have a deep bench of outperforming alternatives they could highlight.”
For investors who still view bitcoin as speculative or marginal, its placement alongside cash-like instruments and traditional equities by BlackRock could help shift that perception. The move may act as a catalyst for broader institutional acceptance, further legitimizing the asset within the mainstream financial landscape.
