Bitcoin Drops After $1.3B BlackRock ETF Sale Sparks Market Reaction

Bitcoin fell sharply after a massive $1.3 billion sale of shares in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) took place on a private trading venue known as a dark pool.

An unidentified trader reportedly sold 29.2 million IBIT shares at around 2:30 p.m. UTC. Dark pools are private platforms where institutions can execute large trades away from public exchanges to reduce market disruption.

Shortly after the transaction, Bitcoin dropped about 1.6%, sliding from nearly $77,875 to $76,720 within 10 minutes. The decline later deepened, with BTC touching a 24-hour low near $75,600, marking a daily drop of roughly 2.8%.

Analysts call it one of the biggest dark pool ETF trades

Alex Thorn described the transaction as the largest dark pool trade he has seen involving a Bitcoin ETF. Meanwhile, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said the sale was more than 22 times larger than the second-biggest IBIT sell order recorded that day.

The trader reportedly sold the shares at $43.16 each, highlighting the scale of institutional activity now influencing crypto markets.

Bitcoin ETF outflows continue to pressure sentiment

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have now recorded eight straight trading days of net outflows. Tuesday alone saw $333.6 million leave the sector, including $192.4 million from IBIT.

Since May 14, more than $2 billion has exited Bitcoin ETFs, signaling weaker institutional demand as major firms reduce exposure to crypto-related investment products.