BlackRock’s (BLK) iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has shattered records by becoming the fastest-growing ETF in history after accumulating over $50 billion in assets in just 11 months. According to Yahoo Finance, this is five times quicker than the investment manager’s previous fastest-growing fund. IBIT also outpaced the firm’s gold ETF (IAU) and played a major role in Bitcoin’s 118% rally this year.
Don't Miss Our New Year's Offers:
- Discover the latest stocks recommended by top Wall Street analysts, all in one place with Analyst Top Stocks
- Make smarter investments with weekly expert stock picks from the Smart Investor Newsletter
This comes after the SEC spent years rejecting multiple spot-Bitcoin ETF applications, which included the first one filed by the Winklevoss twins in 2013. However, the industry’s big breakthrough came when Grayscale Investments won a federal appeals court case against the SEC in 2023 that allowed BlackRock and others to enter the market.
The First Bitcoin ETF with Options Trading
It also helped that IBIT became the first Bitcoin ETF to offer options trading, which have become one of the most-traded contracts tracking ETFs with an average daily volume of $1.7 billion since their November debut. Interestingly, while competitors like Fidelity and Grayscale have gained traction, Vanguard remains absent from the crypto ETF race. Unsurprisingly, industry analysts warn that Vanguard risks alienating younger, crypto-focused investors as BlackRock positions itself as a leader in the evolving digital asset market.
Is BLK a Good Stock to Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on BLK stock based on 14 Buys, two Holds, and zero Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 30% rally in its share price over the past year, the average BLK price target of $1,117.88 per share implies 8.7% upside potential.
