The spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) raked in over $1 billion in inflows on Thursday, marking one of their strongest single-day totals since launch. The surge came as bitcoin broke a new all-time high above $118,000.
Leading the pack was BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which crossed $80 billion in assets under management (AUM), making it the fastest ETF in history to hit that milestone. It took IBIT just 374 days — roughly a fifth of the time it took the previous record-holder, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), which reached the same mark in 1,814 days, according to Bloomberg Intelligence senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas.
IBIT now ranks as the 21st largest ETF globally by assets, a remarkable feat for a fund that launched just over a year ago amid the broader approval of spot bitcoin ETFs in the U.S.
Thursday’s $1 billion inflow marks only the fourth time spot bitcoin ETFs have posted daily amounts that large. The last time was in January as U.S. President Donald Trump took office. Before that, it happened twice in November 2024, shortly after the U.S. election.
The surge in interest reflects growing investor appetite for direct bitcoin exposure in traditional brokerage accounts. Spot bitcoin ETFs offer an easier on-ramp for institutional and retail investors alike, who may be wary of custody and compliance issues in the crypto space.
President Trump’s Media company has recently filed for another spot bitcoin ETF under the Truth Social brand that has yet to receive approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
A number of other ETFs tracking the price of Solana (SOL), XRP (XRP) and others have also yet to get the green light from the regulator.