- Following a significant $1.3 billion BlackRock Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) sell-off that corresponded with a dramatic reduction in the price of Bitcoin, concerns have been expressed about the recent decline in the cryptocurrency.
- Through a dark pool, an unidentified trader sold 29.2 million IBIT shares, causing the price of Bitcoin to drop by 1.5% in a matter of minutes and by about 2.8% over the course of a day.
- The event demonstrates how, as institutional investors have easier access to the market, Bitcoin ETFs are progressively impacting BTC price movements.
- Alex Thorn of Galaxy Digital was among the analysts who described it as the biggest dark pool cryptocurrency exchange to date.
Is BlackRock’s Massive ETF Sell-Off a Warning Sign for Bitcoin? Analysts report that the $1.3 billion sale of shares in BlackRock’s Bitcoin exchange-traded fund by an unidentified trader on Tuesday was accompanied by a sharp decline in the price of Bitcoin.
At 2:30 PM UTC, a trader sold 29.2 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) via a “dark pool,” a private trading platform that organizations frequently utilize to covertly execute significant trades outside of open markets.
The $1.3 billion trade had an instant effect on the cryptocurrency market; according to TradingView data, Bitcoin (BTC) dropped 1.5% from $77,875 to $76,720 in just ten minutes after 2:30 pm UTC.
About 12 hours later, Bitcoin dropped even more to a 24-hour low of $75,600, representing a 2.8% decline for the day.
Could Rising Bitcoin ETF Outflows Signal A Bigger BTC Correction?
Although Bitcoin has traditionally been thought of as an asset that trades outside of the conventional market, products like US-based Bitcoin ETFs have made it easier for institutional investors to trade the cryptocurrency, and it has recently shown a strong correlation with US markets.
massive $1.289 billion IBIT block sale by unknown party through dark pool at 10:30am today, biggest such trade i’ve ever seen pic.twitter.com/9qGDqkfCbu
— Alex Thorn (@intangiblecoins) May 26, 2026
In a post on X, Alex Thorn, head of firmwide research at cryptocurrency investment firm Galaxy Digital, stated that it was the largest trade he has witnessed performed via a dark pool.
The 29.2 million IBIT shares sold at $43.16, which was more than 22 times greater than the second-largest IBIT sell order on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas.
With a $333.6 million withdrawal on Tuesday, including a $192.4 million withdrawal from IBIT, US spot Bitcoin ETFs have now seen eight consecutive trading days of net withdrawals.
Cryptocurrency values are being pressured by broader macroeconomic and geopolitical concerns in addition to the dark pool liquidations. Growing military hostilities between the United States and Iran have significantly reduced the risk appetite of investors worldwide.
At the same time, institutional capital continues to be diverted from volatile risk assets like Bitcoin due to ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty and changes in monetary policy.
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