According to a report by (The Block), BlackRock’s head of digital assets Robert Mitchnick stated that funds have begun to flow back into Bitcoin ETFs, and the structure of investors is shifting from retail to institutional investors.
Mitchnick stated at the Token2049 event in Dubai that investment funds for Bitcoin ETFs are 'massively flowing back.' He also mentioned that in the early stages of ETF launches, funds mainly came from retail investors, including high-net-worth individuals with holdings of over $100 million, but the proportion held by these groups has been declining each quarter, while the proportion held by institutional and wealth advisory clients has been rising. He explained that institutional clients have a longer time horizon and it’s not something that can be accomplished overnight.
When Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas suggested that Bitcoin has shifted from short-term speculators to steadfast holders, Mitchnick said this is a good point, but not just that. He believes treating Bitcoin as a leveraged beta version of U.S. tech stocks makes no fundamental sense. However, he noted that if a certain narrative is repeated often enough, it could potentially become reality.
Mitchnick stated that investors seeking such high-volatility assets do not necessarily need to allocate Bitcoin in their portfolios, but if Bitcoin behaves like a hedge asset or a hedging tool not affected by specific national currency risks, they may consider including Bitcoin in their portfolios. He observed that there was a time when the market was concerned that Bitcoin was merely being treated as a leveraged beta asset, but then funds began to flow in again, with a scale not seen since the ETF launch.
When asked about his view on altcoin ETFs, Mitchnick stated that altcoins have significant differences in investment properties. He believes Bitcoin serves as a potential hedge or portfolio diversification tool, and these characteristics do not apply to other cryptocurrencies. He said:
Their roles in the portfolio are very different, and currently, market attention remains overwhelmingly focused on Bitcoin.
As for whether the new SEC Chairman Paul Atkins will relax regulations to allow more ETFs to launch, or even open up mechanisms like 'physical redemptions', Mitchnick views this cautiously. He said, 'Those who think anything will pass will be disappointed.' He believes that a new regulatory framework is on the way, which may make certain things harder to push through than before.
Source
