BlackRock has unveiled a European ETF listed on Euronext, the iShares Blockchain Technology UCITS ETF. The news comes five months after launching a similar ETF in the United States, which has attracted $6 million in investment so far. In August, BlackRock also launched a private Bitcoin trust for institutions.
Today’s ETF includes 35 companies, with three quarters having a blockchain as their primary blockchain business, including cryptocurrency miners and exchanges. The balance supports the blockchain ecosystem such as payments and semiconductor firms.
‘We believe digital assets and blockchain technologies are going to become increasingly relevant for our clients as use cases develop in scope, scale and complexity. The continued proliferation of blockchain technology underscores its potential across many industries,” said Omar Moufti, product strategist for thematic and sector ETFs at BlackRock.
On the crypto front, BlackRock recently entered into two major partnerships. One was with the Coinbase exchange providing crypto access to BlackRock’s investors. The other was with Circle, the company behind the USDC stablecoin, to explore capital markets applications for USDC.
BlackRock also has various activities in the blockchain and digital assets space outside of crypto. iCapital initiated a blockchain consortium for the alternative investment sector to create a golden record of trades, with BlackRock as one of the consortium members. And BlackRock is a participant in Axoni’s equity swaps blockchain network.
