BlackRock Readies $2...

BlackRock Readies $2 Billion for New Spot Bitcoin ETF Venture

By Jody McDonald January 08, 2024 In Bitcoin, Blackrock, ETF

Several Bitcoin spot ETFs could be approved as early as this week, based on scheduled regulator activities.
Rumours have emerged that BlackRock may be set to inject USD $2 billion into ETFs in the first week.
Approval could possibly be delayed until after January, as potential technical and political hurdles remain.

The coming week is potentially a huge one for crypto markets with several Bitcoin spot ETFs due for approval decisions and rumours now emerging that investment firm BlackRock may have billions of dollars of investor money ready to pour in the first week alone.

This week will also see the announcement of a raft of key economic data in the US, which could potentially impact the crypto market and the broader macro environment.

Key Dates For Crypto This Week

As we emerge from the holiday season, things are really hotting up on the Bitcoin spot ETF approval front.

Several of the ETF applicants, including BlackRock, Grayscale and Fidelity submitted final versions of paperwork to the SEC late last week, with SEC commissioners now scheduled to vote on the applications before Wednesday January 10. If approved, funds could start trading by as early as the next business day.

However, approval this week isn’t a certainty — a report released last week by financial services platform Matrixport sent crypto markets tumbling after it predicted Bitcoin spot ETFs were unlikely to be approved in January, citing hurdles created by the SEC’s insistence on ‘cash creates’ and political factors.

The report highlighted that the current group of SEC commissioners is dominated by Democrats, and Democrats have generally been less crypto-friendly than Republicans:

The current five-person voting Commissioners leadership critical for the ETF approval of the SEC is dominated by Democrats. SEC Chair [Gary] Gensler is not embracing crypto in the U.S. and it might even be a very long shot to expect that he would vote to approve bitcoin spot ETFs.

Matrixport report

In addition to decisions on Bitcoin ETFs a raft of key US economic indicators are also set to be announced this week which could impact the crypto markets:

On Thursday January 11 both the annual and monthly consumer price indexes (CPI) will be handed down along with the initial unemployment claims; and
Friday will see the monthly US producer price index announced.

Rumours BlackRock Poised To Inject Billions In ETFs

Speaking to The Block Editor-in-chief Tim Copeland on an X Spaces stream on Saturday, Van Eck’s Head of Digital Asset Research Matthew Sigel claimed he had heard from a “well placed source” that BlackRock was poised to inject USD $2 billion (AUD $2.9 billion) into the new ETFs in the first week:

I heard from a pretty well placed source that Blackrock has more than $2 billion lined up in week one in new incremental flows from existing Bitcoin holders who are adding to position.

Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Asset Research at Van Eck

Sigel went on to emphasise that his statement was based on second-hand information, saying “I can’t vouch for that. But you know, that’s what everyone is doing. Just making phone calls and trying to find the folks who can write checks into these products.”