BlackRock expected to seed ETF with $10M worth of BTC

BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager and one of the front-runners in the race to issue the first Bitcoin spot ETF in the United States, is expected to purchase $10 million worth of Bitcoin ( BTC ) on Jan. 3, 2024, according to analysts.

On Dec. 23, market research analyst James Seyffart posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, highlighting BlackRock’s intentions to seed its ETF with the ( BTC ) it plans to purchase.

Before this -- SEED MOVEMENTS DO NOT MEAN LAUNCH

Looking like BlackRock is *planning* to make moves on Jan 3rd. They're seeding the ETF with $10 million. But maybe means BlackRock would be expecting a launch to happen shortly after? pic.twitter.com/PknXs5B2TP

— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) December 22, 2023

Seyffart followed up the post by saying that the document that mentions the BTC purchase is not final, approved or “effective” - though the purchase would “jive with our Jan. approval prediction.”

He said that injection of capital wouldn’t necessarily mean the launch of the ETF, but that BlackRock could be expecting a release shortly after. According to Seyffar, the inclusion of the Jan. 3 date is just “teasing,” and he drew the parallel to the date being that of the genesis block of Bitcoin .

A user on the X platform asked Seyffar if $10 million would be a seed size he would expect, to which Seyffar responded that it’s “fairly standard” but is also “subject to change. 

Related: 5 reasons why a spot Bitcoin ETF approval could send BTC price above $100K

In late December, Eric Balchunas, a Bloomberg analyst, also posted about the anticipated purchase on Jan 3., saying that BlackRock’s $10 million ( BTC ) purchase would be a “pretty big bump” from its initial $100,000 seed funding back in October.

BlackRock expecting to seed $IBIT w/ $10 million on Jan 3rd.. notable the date and that it is a pretty big bump up from the $100k they seeded in Oct. https://t.co/cV22QYz3Do

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) December 22, 2023

Balchunas also posted about Bitwise S-1 being filed that intends to seed Bitwise’s pending Bitcoin spot ETF with $200 million, which he said “blows away” what BlackRock plans to purchase. 

“That's gonna be a huge help in the early days of the race. No AP named but prob forthcoming.”

While Jan. 3 has been predicted as the date for BlackRock purchasing its ( BTC ) seed funding, there have also been multiple alternative reports stating the date has been pushed back to Jan. 5. Both dates are still speculative. 

Cointelegraph has reached out to BlackRock for further information on the matter and has yet to receive a response.

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) set the deadline for amendments to Bitcoin spot ETF applications on Dec. 29, 2023, with which BlackRock, Van Eck and Valkyrie all filed last-minute amendments . 

The SEC’s decision on the ETF is anticipated by analysts to be announced by Jan. 10, 2024.

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