BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) achieved its highest-ever daily trading volume of $4.1 billion Wednesday evening amid a record-setting price for the world’s largest crypto.
Bitcoin swelled early in the presidential race, reaching a fresh all-time high above $75,000 shortly after Donald Trump's victory. US-based spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have stood to benefit.
IBIT recorded $1 billion in trading volume within just 20 minutes of market opening, according to senior Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas. The early surge matched IBIT's typical full-day trading volume, setting the stage for its strongest trading session since launching on January 11.
"For context, that's more volume than stocks like Berkshire, Netflix, or Visa saw today," Balchunas wrote in a post to X.
The unprecedented activity shows growing confidence among investors towards institutional crypto products and comes as Trump, who has promised regulatory reform and staunch industry support, heads to a second term.
While IBIT outperformed its rivals on the day, the category still recorded $6 billion in total volume across all funds. US spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced roughly double their average daily volume, showing increased market exuberance following the electoral results, data from CoinGlass shows.
Trump's campaign promises, including proposals for a national Bitcoin reserve, support for crypto miners, and a pledge to form an advisory committee for favorable regulation, have only added to the market’s confidence.
His victory has also sparked optimism about potential SEC leadership changes and more supportive policies for the industry.
Some, including Matt Hougan, Bitwise’s chief investment officer, view Trump's win as a catalyst that could usher in a "golden age" for crypto. Bitwise was one of 11 to bring spot Bitcoin ETFs to the US market earlier this year.
IBIT, which holds approximately 429,185 BTC valued at $30 billion, has established itself as the most prominent of those 11 currently listed in the US.
Its competitive fee of 0.12% for the first year on assets up to $5 billion has helped attract substantial investor interest since launching back in January.
Edited by Sebastian Sinclair