Barclays (NYSE: BCS) and Citigroup (NYSE: C), two of the world's top banks, have increased stakes in an iconic fund launched by the world's largest asset manager, BlackRock (NYSE: BLK). Launc
Barclays (NYSE: BCS) and Citigroup (NYSE: C), two of the world's top banks, have increased stakes in an iconic fund launched by the world's largest asset manager, BlackRock (NYSE: BLK).
Launch in January 2024, BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (Nasdaq: IBIT) is a fund that offers indirect BTC exposure to those who want to invest in crypto from the comfort of traditional stock exchanges.
Though Bitcoin wasn't worth even $1,000 in the years following its launch in 2009, it was trading above $42,000 by the end of 2023. Though it is free from the control of centralized bodies like central banks due to its decentralized nature, Wall Street giants like BlackRock came to embrace it and launched funds tracking its spot price.
As per the onchain analytics platform SoSoValue, BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust has $64.54 billion in cumulative net inflow and $58.71 billion in net assets as of Nov. 11.
BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (Nasdaq: IBIT), Source: SoSoValue
As per Barclays's 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Nov. 6, the British multinational bank held IBIT shares worth $186.66 million at the end of the third quarter of the year.
The stake is 48% higher than IBIT shares worth $88.5 million in the second quarter of 2026.
Citigroup's 13F filing on Nov. 4 shows an IBIT stake of $24.67 million in Q3 2026, up 50% from the previous quarter.
According to Bitwise, banks made up 4.9% ($258 million) of reported spot Bitcoin ETF holdings among Q3 filers so far, up from 3.2% ($107 million) in Q2.
Investment advisers led the holders with $3.5 billion in reported positions, followed by hedge fund managers ($578 million) and brokerages ($510 million).
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