Retail investors account for $135 billion in assets under management tied to spot Bitcoin ETFs

Bloomberg Exchange-traded fund (ETF) analyst Eric Balchunas has disclosed that retail investors hold most of the assets in the spot Bitcoin ETFs. In a post on X, Balchunas noted that around $135 billion of $158 billion in assets under management (AUM) for the spot Bitcoin ETFs are held by retail.

According to Balchunas, hedge funds only own around 10% of the AUM while market makers and institutions hold another 5%. This means that retail holders directly and indirectly hold around 85% of all Bitcoin ETFs, showing that retail remains the dominant force behind ETF adoption.

The ETF expert comments come in light of Bitcoin hitting a new all-time high above $123,o00 and the belief by some people that the flagship asset achieved this without retail investors. Those holding those views rely on the Google search data for Bitcoin compared to the BTC price.

Per the data, there has been a plunge in Google searches for Bitcoin for most of 2025, even as Bitcoin continues to climb higher. Experts have quickly debunked this claim with Bitcoin adviser to the El Salvador President, Max Keiser, noting that ETF is of retail interest.

Meanwhile, Balchunas clarified that the retail interest in Bitcoin through ETFs is not the classic dumb money retail where investors’ strategy is based on celebrity endorsements or degenerate traders’ behavior.

He said:

“This ‘retail interest’ is not dumdum GameStop YOLO retail or ‘I saw Tom Brady in a commercial’ FOMO retail (I think those investors got burned and are not taking second bite apple till at least $150k).”

Instead, these are smart money retail investors who are familiar with the market and fully focused on the fundamentals of Bitcoin. Balchunas noted that this might be why BTC price is stable, as the current retail interest is not the kind to dump due to any major uncertainty.

Investors opting for Bitcoin ETFs over spot assets

Meanwhile, Balchunas’s statement highlights the role of retail investors in driving inflows to spot Bitcoin ETFs as the crypto industry experiences a shift in how retail investors gain exposure to Bitcoin. Rather than using crypto exchanges or digital wallets, many now opt to buy through regulated ETFs tied to their existing TradFi portfolios.

The ETF model removes the need to manage private keys or rely on crypto-native custodians, making Bitcoin more accessible to older investors and traditional account holders. This also eliminates the risks of losing assets due to hacks or scams.

A few months ago, Bitcoin analyst Plan B announced that he had moved all his Bitcoin from self-custody to ETFs, noting that the hassle of managing his private keys is too much. Although the decision generated criticisms from several Bitcoin maxis, it highlights how Bitcoin investors change how they hold the asset.

Bitcoin ETFs post strong inflows with BlackRock IBIT dominating

Meanwhile, spot Bitcoin ETFs have posted consistent inflows throughout 2025, helping to solidify their position as a new core asset class for U.S. investors. According to CoinMarketCap data, spot Bitcoin ETFs have had seven days of consecutive inflows up until July 11. Of those days, two consecutive days had more than $1 billion in inflows each.

The top three products offered by BlackRock IBIT, Fidelity FBTC, and Ark Invest & 21Shares ARKB collectively hold most of these assets. However, BlackRock IBIT continues to dominate the category, with the product now being the 20th largest ETF despite being less than two years old.

Balchunas predicted last week that IBIT could hit $100 billion in AUM this summer, while adding later that recent inflows suggest that it could even happen this month. The product already has $88 billion and has been the third most traded ETF today.

Interestingly, IBIT  has emerged as BlackRock’s most profitable ETF and its seventh largest, showing its massive overperformance in only 18 months.

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