BlackRock Launches Its Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Product (ETP) in Europe

BlackRock, the global asset manager with nearly $12 trillion in assets under management, has just received approval from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to sell its European Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) in the UK.

BlackRock, the global asset manager known for managing nearly $12 trillion in assets, has just received approval from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to sell its European Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) in the UK.

The news comes after household names such as Coinbase, PayPal, and Revolut.

Also Read: Institutional Interest In Bitcoin Is Surging, Reveals New Data From Glassnode

The FCA is recognized for its stringent approval process, with only 14% of applications being successful. Several other companies’ applications were rejected due to a lack of, or error in, information.

However, with 51 approvals in total, and several household names applying, it is interesting that the FCA has now granted permission for iShares Bitcoin ETP to begin trading in the UK.

The iShares Bitcoin ETP, listed under the ticker IB1T, has already started trading on Euronext Paris and Amsterdam. To attract investors, iShares will be charging a fee of just 0.15% on the ETP until the end of 2024. After that, the fee will rise to 0.25%, which is in line with CoinShares’ $1.3 billion physical Bitcoin ETP, the largest in Europe.

Each share in the new IB1T ETP is backed by one whole real BTC, which are held in coinbase custody. This allows investors to get exposure to Bitcoin without necessarily holding or being liable for the cryptocurrency themselves. The product follows the success of BlackRock’s U.S.-traded iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which has already amassed more than $48 billion in assets.

To comply with European financial laws, BlackRock has set up IB1T through a special-purpose vehicle in Switzerland. This setup ensures that the product is in line with legal requirements while offering investors a regulated platform to invest in Bitcoin. The fact that BlackRock is expanding its Bitcoin investment channels throughout Europe indicates a growing demand on an international level.

European institutional and retail investors now have an alternative way of accessing Bitcoin without the intricacy of direct ownership.

With this latest expansion, European investors now have a further regulated means of accessing Bitcoin exposure. As governments continue to pour money into their treasuries and inflation remains a threat, the appeal of Bitcoin as an alternative asset is only going to grow.