\n
![](\"https:\/\/content.fortune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/GettyImages-1917750239-e1709483584417.jpg?w=2048\")
<\/p>\n [ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
Bitcoin\u2019s blistering rally produced record\u00a0inflows<\/a>\u00a0into spot Bitcoin ETFs \u2014 and cemented the investor favorites in this new asset class.<\/p>\n BlackRock Inc.\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT<\/a>) and\u00a0Fidelity Investments\u2019<\/a>\u00a0Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC<\/a>) have captured 79% of total inflows into the \u201cNewborn Nine\u201d \u2014 a popular name for the group of new exchange-traded funds that invest directly in Bitcoin \u2014 since the US Securities and Exchange Commission\u00a0approved<\/a>\u00a0the assets Jan. 10.<\/p>\n Four of the remaining seven funds have responded by cutting fees below those of the two leaders, according to a Bloomberg analysis of\u00a0data<\/a>\u00a0from the funds\u2019 websites. Valkyrie Investments nearly halved its fee to 0.25% from the 0.49% it imposed right before the SEC approval. Franklin Templeton now offers a sector-low 0.19% after slashing its initial management charge by 10 basis points. Only Bitwise has made no change.<\/p>\n Bitcoin has been on a\u00a0tear<\/a>\u00a0this year, topping $63,000 as retail investors\u00a0wary<\/a>\u00a0of missing out snapped up the new ETFs. With firms pushing to lock down market share in a burgeoning asset class, this bifurcation among fund managers looks set to continue.<\/p>\n \u201cI expect further concentration among the top ETFs,\u201d said\u00a0Bryan Armour, director of passive strategies research at\u00a0Morningstar Inc.\u00a0<\/a>\u201cBut others won\u2019t go down without a fight. Fee wars should continue, which will keep pressure on the leaders to maintain their advantage.\u201d<\/p>\n Grayscale Investment<\/a>\u00a0has taken a different approach since its Bitcoin trust converted to an ETF, choosing to maintain a management fee higher than its new rivals. Its fund (GBTC<\/a>) has seen\u00a0outflows<\/a>\u00a0of more than $8 billion since the launch, Bloomberg data show.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Grayscale team anticipated GBTC\u2019s diverse shareholder base would engage in profit-taking and deploy investment strategies that would impact the Trust\u2019s flows, and we are pleased that outflows stabilized over time,\u201d a spokesperson for Grayscale said in a statement. \u201cWe expect GBTC will continue to be a primary capital markets risk transfer tool for Bitcoin.\u201d<\/p>\n The selling has broadly eased, with daily outflows slowing to a daily average of $138 million in February from January\u2019s $403 million. And Greyscale continues to be the biggest fund, with $26 billion of assets under management, compared to BlackRock\u2019s $10 billion.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, there are signs that BlackRock is pulling ahead of Fidelity to dominate the sector.<\/p>\n The New York-based firm\u2019s IBIT fund won $612 million of new investment on Feb. 28, the most for a single day since it launched, and it\u2019s taken in the majority of new flows for most of last month.<\/p>\n The world\u2019s biggest fund manager\u2019s distribution network potentially offers investors better liquidity than most rivals, said\u00a0Todd Sohn, an ETF and technical strategist at\u00a0Strategas Securities<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe flows and volumes to BlackRock\u2019s product reflect their commitment to this asset class,\u201d Sohn said. \u201cI like to believe they realize it\u2019s a \u2018new\u2019 portion of an investment portfolio and are there to provide the access investors may want.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nSubscribe to the Eye on AI newsletter to stay abreast of how AI is shaping the future of business. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n