BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) recently listed on the London Stock Exchange, giving UK investors a regulated way to invest in bitcoin without having to buy or hold the cryptocurrency themselves.
The securities of the ETP are backed by bitcoin held with digital asset custodian Coinbase. For the iShares Bitcoin ETP, Coinbase transfers bitcoin from trading wallets to segregated offline cold storage by the end of each trading day.
The launch comes as UK demand for cryptocurrency continues to grow, with investor participation increasing at an annualised rate of 12% since 2022. A BlackRock report forecasts a further 21% rise in UK adults investing in crypto for the first time over the next year, placing the UK third among European markets for crypto investment growth.
The BlackRock Investment Institute has found that for investors with suitable governance and the ability to tolerate the large short-term drawdowns that can be associated with bitcoin, an allocation of up to 1-2% to bitcoin is a reasonable range in multi-asset portfolios.
“As the UK crypto investor base is projected to approach 4 million over the next year, today’s listing of exchange traded products like iShares Bitcoin ETP unlock a securer gateway to digital assets through traditional investment platforms,” said Jane Sloan, Europe, Middle East and Africa, head of global product solutions at BlackRock. “Built on institutional-grade infrastructure, IB1T enables UK investors to gain exposure to bitcoin with the confidence of robust custody and regulatory oversight.”
