Bitcoin Holders Get 96% Cheaper Entry Into BlackRock’s ETF Without Selling

Bitcoin holders now not want $25 million to swap cash into the BlackRock Bitcoin ETF. The minimal simply fell to $1 million, opening a direct route into iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) with out promoting first.

Robbie Mitchnick, BlackRock’s head of digital property, revealed the lower on Bloomberg’s ETF IQ present on August 10. He stated the agency needs to push the bar even decrease over time.

A Lower Bar for the BlackRock Bitcoin ETF

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas flagged the change after the printed. Until now, the door stood open solely to the very largest holders.

Interesting: Robbie Mitchnick stated on present simply now that bitcoiners can do in-kind exchanges of btc for IBIT for $1mil minimal now. It was once $25mil. https://t.co/uGA74JG2Mv

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) August 10, 2026

The swap runs via approved members, the massive buying and selling companies that create and redeem ETF shares. A holder palms over Bitcoin and receives IBIT shares in return. No sale takes place. The route additionally works in reverse.

The choice itself is younger. Spot Bitcoin ETFs launched in January 2024 on a cash-only mannequin. The SEC solely permitted in-kind swaps for crypto ETFs in July 2025. BlackRock’s lower now pushes that plumbing far down-market.

The timing is placing. US spot Bitcoin ETFs drew greater than $850 million final week, their greatest week since April, in line with SoSoValue. The funds now maintain about $78 billion in bitcoin.

Fear did a number of the pushing. Hackers drained roughly $116 million in Bitcoin from over 5,200 Coldcard hardware wallets, per a TRM Labs analysis. The exploit shook religion in self-custody.

Flows keep uneven, although. The funds shed $145 million on August 10 alone. Still, renewed BlackRock client demand suggests the urge for food runs deeper than one purple day.

Swap Now, Pay Taxes Later

The larger prize sits within the tax code. IBIT runs as a grantor belief. In plain phrases, the IRS treats shareholders as nonetheless proudly owning the Bitcoin contained in the fund.

That element adjustments the mathematics. Selling Bitcoin for money triggers capital good points. Swapping it into IBIT could not. Clinton Donnelly, the crypto tax specialist behind the CryptoTaxFixer account, spelled out the place in a publish.

“Not 100%, however the present tax place is that an in-kind contribution of Bitcoin to IBIT is non-taxable, together with your foundation and holding interval carrying over. The caveat is that this depends on IBIT’s grantor belief therapy, and the IRS has not formally dominated on it.”

Balchunas backed that studying. The tax invoice is delayed, not erased, as a result of the unique price foundation carries over.

Good additional information on the “in-kind conversions” of bitcoin for ETF shares. Yes, you do not understand good points however you do carry your foundation, so it is merely deferral, not dodge. And sure, it really works the opposite manner: ETF for btc. And sure, it’s one thing that works w Grantor Trust, not open finish… https://t.co/EFBcrlFjKd

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) August 11, 2026

Stock and bond funds can’t copy the transfer. Most run as open-end funds, not grantor trusts.

Bitcoin (BTC) traded near $63,602 on Tuesday, down 1.2% in a day. If the bar retains falling, upcoming stream experiences could present how a lot cold-storage bitcoin strikes into the wrapper.

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