Bitcoin (BTC) vs iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT): Better buy?

Bitcoin price staged a strong comeback on Monday as the countdown to SEC’s approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF continued. It jumped to a high of $47,000, its highest level since January 2022. It was also up by over 200% from its lowest level in 2022, making it the best-performing major asset in the market. 

The case for Bitcoin

Bitcoin has proven to be a real financial asset in the past fifteen years. As I wrote in this report, it has survived some of the biggest challenges in the industry. It thrived after the collapse of Mt. Gox in 2014. Back then, Mt.Gox was the biggest exchange in the world.

It also survived the collapse of other companies like FTX, Celsius, Voyager Digital, Terra, and Three Arrows Capital. At the time of collapsing, FTX was the second-biggest exchange in the world after Binance in valuation terms. 

Most importantly, Bitcoin has moved in sync with American stocks in this high-interest rate environment. In the past, the argument was that Bitcoin was only thriving because the Federal Reserve brought interest rates to near zero. 

While Bitcoin crashed in 2022 as the Fed hiked rates it was not an exception as the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 indices also plunged by double digits. They all bounced back in 2023 as signs of Fed’s capitulation emerged.

Therefore, there is a likelihood that Bitcoin will continue doing well in 2024. Besides, there are signs that the Federal Reserve will start to cut interest rates soon. That’s because inflation has moved downwards, helped by the falling energy prices. Also, a Bitcoin halving is set to happen in April.

BTC vs iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT)

The other catalyst for Bitcoin price is the upcoming approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF. While many companies like Grayscale, Ark Invest, Valkyrie, and Franklin Templeton have applied for an ETF, focus will be on Blackrock.

Blackrock, the biggest asset manager in the world, has applied for the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which will track the price of Bitcoin. Therefore, the question among many people is on the better investment between Bitcoin and IBIT.

Understand this.

There is probably not a single day in #Bitcoin's history.

Where there has been a net in-flow of more than $1.5 Billion long on #Bitcoin.

And the ETF's are about to get a mandate to buy roughly $3.5bn in the space of 5 days.

With the bulk of it coming in on…

— British HODL ❤️‍🔥🐂❤️‍🔥 (@BritishHodl) January 7, 2024

I believe that the two assets will move in lockstep with each other. A good example of this is the close relationship between gold and the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD). As shown below, the two assets always move in the same direction.

Gold vs SPDR Gold Trust (GLD)

However, there is a difference between the iShares Bitcoin Trust and Bitcoin. If you buy Bitcoin and store it, there will be no additional costs. As a result, you will fully benefit when the price rises.

The IBIT ETF, on the other hand, has a cost. According to its prospectus, the fund will have an expense ratio of 0.20%, which is quite safe. This means that if you invest $100,000 in the fund, you will pay $200 per year. If Bitcoin remains intact for a decade, this means that you will have to pay $2,000 in this period.

There are benefits for holding IBIT instead of Bitcoin, however. The most important benefits are liquidity and security. As an ETF, it will be easy to buy and sell your holdings since they trade as stocks. Also, because of measures by Blackrock, your funds will always be safe.

Therefore, in this case, the best approach, I believe is to buy and hold Bitcoins in a cold storage because it is a cheaper approach. Buying IBIT is also a better approach, especially when compared to other ETFs like the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust (FBTC) and Franklin Bitcoin ETF (EZBC), which are more expensive.

The post Bitcoin (BTC) vs iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT): Better buy? appeared first on Invezz