BlackRock Expands BUIDL Fund to Include Five New Blockchains
BlackRock, a crypto ETF issuer and asset manager, announced the expansion of its USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) to include five new blockchain ecosystems: Aptos, Arbitrum, Avalanche, Optimism, and Polygon. Initially launched on the Ethereum network in March 2024, BUIDL became the largest tokenized fund worldwide by assets under management (AUM) within 40 days.
BNY Mellon To Custody BUIDL
This expansion allows BUIDL to engage with more blockchain-based financial products, enhancing accessibility for investors, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and digital asset firms. Carlos Domingo, CEO and co-founder of Securitize, emphasized that this multi-chain approach increases the potential of the BUIDL ecosystem, enabling efficiencies in real-world asset tokenization.
With these additions, BlackRock aims to provide diverse options and access for investors, facilitating the development of applications that integrate seamlessly with the BUIDL fund. BNY Mellon will serve as the fund administrator and custodian for BUIDL, following its recent acquisition of a Bitcoin and crypto custody license for institutional services.
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Achieves Unprecedented Growth
On the crypto ETF front, BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, surpassed $40 billion in AUM just two weeks after reaching $30 billion. This milestone was achieved in a record 211 days, breaking the previous record held by the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG).
IBIT ranks in the top 1% of all ETFs by assets and has outperformed all 2,800 ETFs launched in the last decade. Bitcoin ETFs collectively crossed the $90 billion asset threshold, driven by a significant $6 billion increase in recent days, which included $1 billion in new inflows and $5 billion in market appreciation. The popularity of Bitcoin ETFs is now 72% toward surpassing gold ETFs in total assets.
The growth in Bitcoin ETF assets coincides with increased investor confidence, particularly following Donald Trump's recent presidential election victory over Kamala Harris, positively impacting market sentiment. Bitcoin experienced a substantial rally, climbing over 24% to reach a record high of $93,000 in the past week.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com