BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF Surpasses S&P 500 Fund in Annual Fees

According to Cointelegraph, BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, is now generating more annual fees from its spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) than from its flagship S&P 500 fund. This shift highlights the growing investor interest in Bitcoin and the impact of fee compression in core equity exposure. Nate Geraci, president of NovaDius Wealth Management, noted that the iShares Bitcoin (BTC) ETF (IBIT) has overtaken the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) in annual fee revenue, reflecting the increasing demand for Bitcoin. The IBIT, with an expense ratio of 0.25% and approximately $75 billion in assets under management, has generated $187.2 million in annual fees, surpassing the IVV by about $100,000. Despite the IVV being over eight times larger, with around $624 billion in assets, it charges significantly less at 0.03%. This development has drawn comments from several crypto executives. Anthony Pompliano, a crypto entrepreneur, remarked that Bitcoin now has Wall Street's full attention. Ben Pham, chief financial officer of Strive Funds, suggested that Bitcoin could signal the end of active management and passive indexation portfolios. Crypto trader Cade O’Neill commented on the implications for capital flow, indicating that institutions are now committed to Bitcoin. James McKay, founder of McKay Research, described the news as bullish. Since its launch in January 2024, BlackRock's IBIT has recorded $52.4 billion in inflows, the highest among U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, according to Farside data. Bitcoin's price has increased by 2.37% over the past 30 days, and the IBIT closed Wednesday at $62.41, up 4.31% for the day. Meanwhile, the IVV closed at $623.42, up 0.44%. U.S.-based spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced their first net outflow day on Wednesday after 15 consecutive days of inflows. This article does not provide investment advice or recommendations. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research before making investment decisions.