BlackRock fund bought bitcoin futures in January, regulatory filings show

Asset management giant BlackRock revealed Wednesday that one of its funds held some bitcoin futures as of the end of January. 

Per the March 31 filing, the BlackRock Global Allocation fund held 37 units of CME's March 2021 bitcoin futures. The filing indicates that the contracts expired on March 26. CoinDesk first reported the news. 

The development comes months after two BlackRock funds, including the Blackrock Global Allocation Fund, indicated in regulatory filings that they would potentially obtain exposure to crypto markets by way of CME's bitcoin futures product. Based on the timing of those twin filings, dated January 20, the actual purchases of the CME bitcoin futures would have occurred soon after. Because the filings only provide a financial picture up to January 31, it's unclear whether BlackRock funds continue to maintain CME bitcoin futures exposure. 

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Per the filing, the aggregate notional amount of the contracts was approximately $6.1 million on the date of expiration, with an appreciation value of roughly $360,000.

In mid-February, BlackRock CIO Rick Rieder said that the firm was "starting to dabble" in bitcoin during an appearance on CNBC. 

"My sense is the technology has evolved and the regulation has evolved to the point where a number of people find it should be part of the portfolio, so that's what's driving the price up," he remarked at the time. 

This report has been updated with additional information from the filing.