A substantial portion of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) outflows since the trust converted into an exchange-traded fund (ETF) earlier in January was FTX’s bankruptcy estate dumping GBTC in its holdings, according to a report by CoinDesk which cited private data and two people familiar with the matter.
As spot bitcoin ETFs began trading on January 11, and all other issuers, including BlackRock and Fidelity, were seeing inflows, GBTC saw over $2.9 billion in shares sold by its investors. According to CoinDesk, records suggest that FTX liquidated 22.28 million shares worth nearly $1 billion.
The move took advantage of the price disparity between Grayscale trust shares and the net asset value of underlying bitcoin, CoinDesk notes. By the end of the first day that the GBTC ETF traded on NYSE Arca, the value of FTX’s shares had risen from the $597 million declared on October 25 to roughly $900 million at $40.69 per share.
The publication also noted that on Monday, Alameda Research voluntarily dismissed a lawsuit against Grayscale over charging excessive fees.
Information for this story was found via CoinDesk, Bloomberg, and the sources and companies mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to the organizations discussed. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
