As of December 31, 2024, Abu Dabi announced that Blackrock has invested $ 436.9 million in the Ishares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT). The investment was made through Mubadala Investments, one of the sovereign asset funds operating in the name of the capital of the United Arab Emirates. Information was included in the 13F file presented to the US Securities and Stock Exchange Commission (SEC).
Bitcoin investment from Abu Dhabi
While the investment news aroused the resonance in the market, the price of Bitcoin increased by 1 %to $ 97,700. This investment attracts attention as one of Abu Dhabi’s first major allocations for crypto beings. In addition, the arrival of this investment after Blackrock’s commercial license in Abu Dhabi in November last year shows that crypto adaptation in the region has increased. Blackrock’s Spot Bitcoin ETF, which currently has a $ 56 billion asset, is the largest fund on the market.
This investment of Abu Dhabi is not the first step in the city’s crypto asset field. In 2023, Marathon Digital and Zero Two announced their plans to establish a large Bitcoin mining facility. On the other hand, former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao implied that other Abu Dhabi -based sovereign asset funds can also invest in the crypto.
Anthony Pompliano, one of Bitcoin defenders, said Abu Dabi’s BTC investments offer a strategic opportunity for the US. Pompliano said on his social media account, “Abu Dhabi’s Sovereign Asset Fund takes hundreds of millions of dollars Bitcoin, and people still think that the United States will not buy Bitcoin. Strategic Bitcoin reserve becomes reality ”. Pompliano also emphasized that one of the world’s largest sovereign asset funds to start investing in Bitcoin and said, “There is only 21 million Bitcoin in total. I wonder what will happen after states entering this market. ”
Wisconsin increased investments
On the other hand, the Wisconsin Province Investment Board (SWIB) in the USA increased Blackrock’s shares in the Fund of Ishares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) to a total of 6 million shares. The total value of these shares exceeds 321 million dollars as of December 31, 2024. In addition, the Crypto investments of the Wisconsin Investment Board are not limited to IBIT, Coinbase, Mara Holdings, Robinhood and Block Inc. It includes companies such as.
Considering the increase in the interest of governments and financial institutions in the Middle East to blockchain and crypto assets, this move of Abu Dhabi stands out as an important indicator of expanding crypto adaptation in the region.
