BlackRock's IBIT Sees $2 Billion Exit in Nine Days of Losses

The iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) from BlackRock recorded another $269.7 million in withdrawals on Wednesday, marking its ninth consecutive session of redemptions. This came as U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds experienced a fifth straight day of net outflows, totaling $299.8 million.

Over the nine sessions starting Oct. 30, IBIT has lost roughly $2 billion. The fund, which is the biggest among U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs, has faced withdrawals on every trading day so far this month.

The wider group has performed only marginally better. The 11 funds have seen about $1.44 billion leave over the previous five trading days, and around $1.88 billion in November, with outflows on seven of the month's eight sessions. The only exception was Nov. 4, when $74.6 million was added, even as IBIT itself saw $201.2 million exit that day.

IBIT accounts for about $1.77 billion of November's outflows, or roughly 94% of the total.

Wednesday's selling was focused. Alongside IBIT, Grayscale's GBTC shed $39.1 million, while Morgan Stanley's MSBT was the only fund to see inflows, at about $9 million. The remaining funds reported no movements.

IBIT streak still short of this year's worst

The current run is not a record. Both the group and IBIT experienced 13 straight trading days without inflows from May 15 to June 3, the longest outflow streaks of the year. IBIT then had an 11-session streak from June 17 to July 2.

However, the scale of the recent withdrawals is notable. IBIT's two largest single-day outflows of the year both occurred this month: $405.3 million on Nov. 2 and $403 million on Nov. 6.

The selling has also changed the year's trajectory. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs are now down about $1.42 billion in net flows for the year, compared with roughly $25.2 billion of inflows at the same point last year. The Australian Financial Review noted on Thursday that the selling has wiped out the year's net inflows into the funds.

IBIT remains positive for the year, with about $2.45 billion in net inflows in 2026 and roughly $64.5 billion since its launch in January 2024. That buffer has diminished rapidly. IBIT took in about $932 million in October, and November's withdrawals have already more than twice erased that amount.

The withdrawals come just days after BlackRock argued that security fears were pushing bitcoin whales out of self-custody and into IBIT.

Why bitcoin ETF investors are pulling back

The outflows started before this week's worst headlines but have accelerated alongside them. A hotter-than-expected October inflation report on Tuesday increased bets on a Federal Reserve rate hike in December, and Polymarket odds of a hike rose to about 97%, according to Yahoo Finance. Higher rates make cash and bonds more appealing compared to assets like bitcoin.

Tech stocks have added to the pressure. Nvidia shares fell roughly 9% after Wednesday's close following reports that its board was preparing to remove CEO Jensen Huang, and Nasdaq 100 futures declined with them. Nvidia has not announced a decision. Bitcoin has traded closely with tech shares this year.

Index provider MSCI also confirmed after Wednesday's close that it will remove Strategy (MSTR) from its indexes after Nov. 30, a decision that requires tracking funds to sell shares of the largest corporate bitcoin holder.

Bitcoin traded near $72,800 early Thursday, close to Tuesday's low of about $72,700, its weakest level since Aug. 20. It is down roughly 6% over the past week.

ETF flows for Thursday will be reported after the close. The test now is whether IBIT ends its streak before it matches the 13-day run from the spring, or whether the steady redemptions keep pressuring the bitcoin price ahead of the Fed's December meeting.