U.Today – American multinational investment giant BlackRock (NYSE:) strengthened its position as the world’s dominant asset manager by achieving an $11.5 trillion asset under management (AUM) milestone. As revealed in its third quarter earnings report, the company said its net asset value increased by $2.4 trillion compared to the previous year, driven by net inflows of $456 billion and positive market movements.
The year appeared
Although BlackRock has already laid the groundwork for the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem, its first major product, the spot Bitcoin ETF, launched this year.
This product was a complete turnaround for BlackRock, a traditionally conservative company. With the adoption of Bitcoin, CEO Larry Fink is now one of the main supporters of the digital currency. With AUM growing, it is unclear what the company’s overall plans are for its iShares Bitcoin Trust product.
While the Bitcoin ETF is BlackRock’s flagship and most popular crypto product, BlackRock is also fully invested in iShares Trust, an ETH ETF. Despite the overall underperformance of Ethereum ETF products, BlackRock remains the leader among issuers overall.
Following the massive augment in BlackRock AUM, it can be concluded that Bitcoin and Ethereum have contributed significantly to this modern milestone.
Will BlackRock do more?
According to the Bitcoin ETF product page, BlackRock has 369,640.1483 BTC on escrow as it continues to buy up the dip. This total portfolio makes the company one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin and can augment its bets now that it has more capital reserves.
As a regulated investment company, BlackRock combines a conservative approach with the adoption of modern technologies. Therefore, its current capital base may encourage it to take more calculated risks in the future.
Despite BlackRock’s stance, not all rivals share its vision for Bitcoin. Companies like Vanguard have specifically issued a widely publicized disclaimer that they will not engage in Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies in general.
