News
BlackRock reports record demand for in‑kind swaps into IBIT as security concerns rise
BlackRock's head of digital assets Robbie Mitchnick told Barron's that demand for swapping directly held bitcoin for iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) shares is at its highest, driven by security and peace of mind amid kidnappings and hacks. The in‑kind conversions are processed through Galaxy Digital, Talos and Virtu, with reported swap volume of $3.6 billion, though the true figure may be larger. Minimum swap size has fallen to between $1 million and $2 million from around $30 million. IBIT held 795,921 BTC, worth about $60.4 billion as of Nov 6, while U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs lost $1.28 billion that week, with IBIT accounting for $1.21 billion of the outflow.