BlackRock Digital Assets Chief Says Bitcoin Poised for Sharp Gain as Sentiment Shifts

BlackRock’s head of digital assets said investor sentiment toward Bitcoin is shifting and predicted the cryptocurrency will climb sharply.

Forbes reported on August 11 that Robert Mitchnick told Bloomberg he has seen a noticeable but subtle change in investor sentiment over the past month.

Mitchnick also cited Bitcoin’s divergence from the stock market this year as a positive sign. While equities surged on enthusiasm for artificial intelligence, Bitcoin moved sideways or declined, and that decoupling weighed on the token at the time.

Over the long term, however, he called Bitcoin’s separation from equities a healthy development. He said the cryptocurrency can serve as a portfolio diversification tool and as a hedge against unpredictable tail risks.

“Bitcoin has gone through five major boom-and-bust cycles so far,” Mitchnick said. “The path was never smooth, but by the end of each cycle, Bitcoin was trading far above where it started. This time is no different.”

Flows into U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have also improved recently. SoSoValue data show that more than $850 million flowed into U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, including BlackRock’s IBIT, over the five trading sessions last week. That was the strongest inflow since mid-April.

BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, now holds about 750,000 BTC with assets valued at nearly $50 billion, Forbes reported.