BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF IBIT Outshines S&P 500 ETF in Fee Revenue—Crypto Flexes Its Muscles

Wall Street’s old guard just got a wake-up call. BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) isn’t just playing the game—it’s rewriting the rules, pulling ahead of the S&P 500 ETF in fee revenue. Who saw that coming? (Besides crypto bulls, of course.)

Fee Wars: Crypto Takes the Crown

IBIT’s fee haul now eclipses the S&P 500 ETF—a symbolic shift for an asset class regulators once dismissed as ‘niche.’ Maybe ‘niche’ means ‘profitable’ in hedge-fund speak.

The Takeaway

Traditional finance’s golden child just got upstaged by a Bitcoin ETF. Cue the existential crisis for fee-hungry asset managers. Time to update those pitch decks—blockchain isn’t just for anarchists anymore.

• BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin ETF now generates $186M in annual fees, surpassing its S&P 500 ETF (IVV).
• IBIT has become the most successful ETF launch ever, managing nearly $75B in assets within a year.
• Bitcoin’s 60-day volatility via IBIT has dropped to near parity with the S&P 500, signaling institutional stabilization.

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) has officially become the firm’s most lucrative product in its asset class, pulling in a staggering $186 million annually in fee revenue, outpacing its long-standing heavyweight, the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV), by $3 million.

Despite being launched less than a year ago, IBIT has rewritten ETF history, generating immense interest and inflows that have made it the most successful ETF debut ever recorded. Managing close to $75 billion in assets with a 25 basis point fee, IBIT has managed to eclipse IVV, which oversees a far larger $609 billion but charges a mere 3 basis points in fees.

ETF analyst Nate Geraci was among the first to spotlight the shift, calling attention to the unprecedented revenue performance of IBIT, a fund tied to Bitcoin, an asset once considered far too volatile and speculative for institutional portfolios.

iShares bitcoin ETF now generates more fee revenue for BlackRock than its largest ETF, the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF…

IBIT annual revenue = $186mil

IVV annual revenue = $183mil

IBIT w/ nearly $75bil AUM at 25bps.

IVV $609bil at 3bps.

Only took 18 months.

h/t @bespokeinvest

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Rivals S&P 500 in Volatility

Traditionally, equity-based ETFs like IVV have been the cornerstone of passive investment strategies. But IBIT’s swift rise and revenue dominance signal a dramatic pivot in investor behavior, with cryptocurrencies, specifically Bitcoin, now capturing mainstream capital flows.

What’s particularly notable is that this success wasn’t built on HYPE alone. IBIT has consistently maintained strong inflows, even during periods when Bitcoin faced uncertainty in broader macroeconomic conditions. For example, while May delivered mixed results for the digital asset market, IBIT still saw fresh inflows and led among crypto-related ETFs.

This consistent traction suggests a deeper, more structural shift in how investors perceive and use Bitcoin, not just as a speculative asset, but increasingly as a Core portfolio component.

A surprising twist to IBIT’s rise has been the convergence in volatility between Bitcoin and traditional equity markets. ETF expert Eric Balchunas recently noted that IBIT’s 60-day volatility was once 5.7 times greater than that of the S&P 500. Today, that figure hovers just above 1, reflecting an astonishing decline in Bitcoin’s relative volatility.

Speaking of bitcoin's volatility, here's a chart showing the ratio of IBIT's 60-Day volatility to SPX. It was 5.7x more volatile a year ago, now it's barely over 1 (meaning about same vol as US stocks) https://t.co/PnPtYUetoE pic.twitter.com/m6mhjdTJ0N

This volatility compression is significant. It suggests that Bitcoin, while still inherently volatile, is now behaving more like a traditional financial asset. This trend may be tied directly to the institutionalization of crypto via ETFs like IBIT, which bring both liquidity and trading volume under-regulated, familiar investment vehicles.

BlackRock’s IBIT ETF Reshapes Crypto Investing

The growing dominance of Bitcoin ETFs has had a broader market impact. Since the SEC approved spot Bitcoin ETFs, BTC’s price has maintained levels above its pre-approval average, a first for an asset historically marked by boom-and-bust cycles. Despite ongoing headwinds such as halving-driven uncertainty, macroeconomic pressures, and political pushback, Bitcoin’s corrections have remained relatively mild.

This stability, some analysts argue, is being driven by institutional capital via ETFs, which introduces long-term, less reactionary investors into the ecosystem. While this helps reduce volatility, it also raises questions about whether Bitcoin’s traditional market behavior is undergoing a permanent transformation.

While IBIT may no longer be breaking records for weekly growth, its current position as a revenue juggernaut is reshaping the ETF and crypto landscapes alike. Its fee revenue, higher than even BlackRock’s flagship stock market ETF, underscores a growing appetite for regulated crypto exposure among institutional and retail investors.

Moreover, BlackRock’s ongoing accumulation of Bitcoin, alongside its increasing interest in altcoins, further cements the asset manager’s conviction in crypto’s future. IBIT may have started as an experiment in digital asset exposure, but it has evolved into a flagship product setting the pace for a rapidly maturing market.