ProShares' stablecoin-ready ETF generates record $17 billion in day-one trading volume

A GENIUS Act-inspired money market exchange-traded fund has set a new record for first-day trading volume.

The ProShares GENIUS Money Market ETF (NYSE: IQMM) genereated $17 billion on Thursday. IQMM is structured to hold assets that meet the legal reserve requirements for dollar-backed stablecoins in the U.S. The fund aligns with the GENIUS Act, signed into law last July, which mandates that stablecoin issuers maintain 1:1 backing with safe, highly liquid assets such as U.S. Treasury bills.

"That is multitudes beyond the all-time record for an ETF," Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said Friday on X. "I was wrong about this ETF, I just figured it would be niche at best as ppl would use $BIL or $SHV as money mkt subs."

For context, Balchunas noted that BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT), which debuted in January 2024, did $1 billion in day-one volume. He also posited the IQMM situation could be a case of "BYOA" ETF strategy — a practice in which large asset managers direct client capital into their own proprietary products rather than competing funds ("bring your own assets").

When asked where that money is coming from, NovaDius Wealth Management President Nate Geraci said it could be USDC issuer Circle.

"Would assume ProShares cut deal w/ one of major U.S.-based stablecoin issuers," Geraci said on X. "Looking at assets, believe that would only leave Circle."

Crypto's $300 billion stablecoin supply is increasingly used as "everyday money," a study conducted in partnership with Coinbase and Artemis showed. Holders allocate about a third of their savings to crypto and stablecoins, The Block previously reported, "signaling a shift from speculation to core wealth allocation."

Meanwhile, crypto advocates and banking groups met Thursday to continue negotiations over how stablecoin yields continue to shape the fate of a broader crypto market structure bill.