After launching the most successful spot bitcoin ETF on the market, BlackRock has now decided to issue a lengthy paper detailing the cryptocurrency's unique standing among major asset classes.

Bitcoin BTC -0.93% has a market capitalization north of $1 trillion and BlackRock's spot bitcoin ETF, launched at the beginning of this year, has accumulated assets under management of $21 billion, also making it one of the most successful exchange-traded funds in history.

In a new, nine-page whitepaper, BlackRock outlines what makes bitcoin not only a "unique diversifier," but also an asset that many investors struggle to analyze "relative to traditional assets." Correlations with U.S. equities or USD interest rates have been short-lived, the paper argues.

One of BlackRock's key points when dissecting both bitcoin's performance, and the difficulty of predicting its price, is the claim that the cryptocurrency "reflects little fundamental exposure" to the macro factors that impact most traditional asset classes. The Wall Street firm points out that while bitcoin remains a "risky" asset class, it has outperformed all other major asset classes in seven of the last 10 years.

BlackRock also mentions, however, that in the three years bitcoin didn't outperform other asset classes, it was the worst performing.

"These movements in bitcoin's price continue to reflect, in part, its evolving prospects through time of becoming adopted on a widespread basis as a global monetary alternative," BlackRock said in the paper. 

Because bitcoin appears to be isolated from global macro factors, for some it has become a "flight to safety" amid geopolitical tensions, the paper said. BlackRock also makes the case for bitcoin providing protection from the U.S. dollar potentially weakening as a result of the federal deficit.

Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.

© 2024 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。