BlackRock's Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) is set to make its debut in Brazil tomorrow, according to a report from Brazil's largest financial market news platform, InfoMoney. The launch comes on the heels of BlackRock's announcement that the Brazilian depositary receipts (BDRs) for the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT39) will begin trading on the Brazilian B3 exchange on Friday, according to the report.
“Our digital assets journey has been built around the goal of providing high-quality access tools for investors,” said Carina Saada, Head of BlackRock in Brazil. “IBIT39 is a natural evolution of our efforts over many years and builds on the core capabilities we have established to date in the digital asset market.”
IBIT39 will initially be available to qualified investors, with retail access expected to follow in the coming “weeks.” The management fee for IBIT39 is set at 0.25%, with a one-year waiver and a reduction to 0.12% after reaching $5 billion in assets under management.
In the US, where bitcoin ETFs were liquidated by regulators in January, BlackRock's bitcoin ETFs have emerged as the most popular option, accumulating more than $9 billion in assets since launch. According to Bloomberg data, BlackRock's ETFs attracted a record $612 million in inflows in a single day yesterday.
Despite the success of Bitcoin ETFs, Saadeh stressed that the launch of BlackRock in Brazil and the United States does not constitute an endorsement of Bitcoin itself, but rather a recognition of its importance as an asset class. “Our goal is to serve our customers with safe and transparent products. We do not have any recommendation or any expectations regarding Bitcoin itself,” Saadeh explained.
