A Bloomberg analyst is reporting that BlackRock is “seeding” its spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas notes that BlackRock announced the seeding in a recent amendment to their spot BTC ETF filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Their application, which is called the iShares Bitcoin Trust, hasn’t been approved yet.
Explains Balchunas,
“Seeding an ETF is when initial funding is provided (typically) by a bank or broker-dealer used to purchase a few creation units (in this case Bitcoin) in exchange for ETF shares which can be traded in the open market on day one.
Note: Seeding is typically not a lot of money just enough to get ETF going. So I wouldn’t read this as ‘omg Blackrock is buying a ton of Bitcoin’ at all but more the fact they doing it and disclosing it shows another step in the process of launching.”
The analyst notes that seeding often happens when ETFs are “preparing to launch.”
Balchunas also points out that the iShares Bitcoin Trust has been listed on the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), which clears trades for the Nasdaq. The ETF’s ticker will be IBTC.
BTC is trading at $33,952 at time of writing.
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