Bitcoin-ETF GBTC Sees $7 Billion Asset Outflow

Grayscale, the largest investment firm, continues to witness a substantial outflow of funds from its Bitcoin-ETF, GBTC. Expert analyst Nate Geraci reported that the total asset outflow from GBTC has now reached $7 billion. However, he also noted a significant slowdown in the pace of fund withdrawals. While January 2024 saw the highest proportion of outflow with $5.64 billion exiting GBTC by month-end, February only witnessed losses of $1.37 billion. Geraci anticipates the trend of asset withdrawal to persist in the near future.

Jim Bianco, the founder of Bianco Research, attributes this considerable outflow to market participants rebalancing their investment portfolios and shifting assets to funds with lower fees. Grayscale continues to impose a 1.5% fee, whereas other ETFs offer fees ranging from 0.12% to 0.9%. Geraci speculates that the company might introduce a "mini-GBTC," a separate fund with lower fees.

Additionally, a directive allowing the bankrupt crypto lender Genesis to sell part of its Grayscale shares has been signed. The company held approximately $1.6 billion worth of shares, including GBTC, ETHE, and ETCG shares.

Previously, Crypto.ru reported that assets under the management of the top nine spot Bitcoin-ETFs exceeded 200,000 BTC. This ranking includes BlackRock, Fidelity, Bitwise, Ark, and other major investment firms. As of February 15, 2024, net inflows into funds amounted to over $2.2 billion. Such positive sentiment towards Bitcoin-ETFs led to a sharp rise in the main digital asset to a local historical high of $52,800.