BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager, with more than $11 trillion in firm-wide AUM. Its iShares franchise issues two of the most-traded spot crypto ETFs in the United States: the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and the iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA). Together they account for roughly half of all US spot crypto ETF assets and consistently lead daily flow rankings published on this site.
IBIT launched on Nasdaq in January 2024 as one of the first US spot Bitcoin ETFs after SEC approval. It became the fastest ETF in history to cross $50B in AUM, holding spot BTC in a Coinbase Custody Trust structure. The fund charges a 0.25% expense ratio (with a waiver schedule on initial assets) and uses in-kind creation and redemption. IBIT is widely used by registered investment advisors (RIAs), hedge funds and sovereign wealth funds for regulated Bitcoin exposure without dealing with self-custody.
ETHA launched in July 2024 after the SEC approved spot Ethereum ETFs. The fund holds spot ETH in cold storage at a qualified custodian and does not currently stake its ETH (so holders forgo staking yield in exchange for ETF wrapper benefits). Since launch ETHA has consistently led the ETH-class category by both AUM and average daily flow.
BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust competes most directly with Fidelity's FBTC, Grayscale's GBTC, ARK 21Shares' ARKB and Bitwise's BITB. Its dominant position is driven by iShares' distribution muscle across institutional advisors and an aggressive launch fee. On the Ethereum side, ETHA's main rivals are Fidelity FETH and Grayscale ETHE. Investors comparing crypto ETFs typically look at four criteria: AUM and liquidity, expense ratio, custodian and creation/redemption mechanics. BlackRock leads on the first three for the BTC product and on AUM for the ETH product.
BlackRock issues two US spot crypto ETFs through its iShares brand: IBIT (iShares Bitcoin Trust) and ETHA (iShares Ethereum Trust). Both trade on Nasdaq, hold spot crypto via a regulated custodian and use the standard ETF creation/redemption mechanism.
IBIT is the largest US spot Bitcoin ETF by assets under management. It became the fastest ETF in history to reach $50B in AUM. Current AUM and daily net flow figures are shown in the BlackRock funds table above and updated from public market data.
IBIT's headline expense ratio is 0.25%, with a launch fee waiver applied to the first portion of assets for a fixed period. ETHA's expense ratio is similar in structure. Always verify the current fee in the fund's official prospectus before investing — fees occasionally change.
Spot crypto held by IBIT and ETHA is custodied at Coinbase Custody Trust Company, a New York–chartered limited purpose trust company. BNY Mellon serves as the cash custodian, transfer agent and administrator.
IBIT and GBTC both deliver spot Bitcoin exposure, but they differ on fees and structure. GBTC has a higher expense ratio (about 1.5%) reflecting its history as a closed-end trust converted to an ETF in January 2024. IBIT is much cheaper at 0.25% and has overtaken GBTC in AUM, which is why GBTC has experienced sustained net outflows. Which is "better" depends on tax basis (GBTC holders often have legacy positions worth keeping) and broker availability.