In a significant demonstration of institutional commitment, asset management giant BlackRock has deposited a combined $89.5 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) into the institutional platform Coinbase Prime. According to on-chain data from analytics provider Onchain Lens, the transaction involved 1,134 Bitcoin, valued at approximately $75 million, and 7,553 Ethereum, worth about $14.46 million.
The deposit, which occurred in early 2025, is seen as more than a simple asset transfer. It represents a strategic move utilizing Coinbase Prime, a prime brokerage service offering institutional-grade custody, advanced trading execution, and portfolio management tools tailored for large-scale investors like hedge funds and asset managers. This action follows BlackRock's successful launch of its iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), one of the first U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, and is interpreted by market analysts as a bullish, long-term signal for core crypto assets.
Concurrently, BlackRock's tokenized fund, the BUIDL fund, has witnessed its market capitalization surge by nearly 30% over the past 30 days. This growth accelerated after BUIDL became officially tradable on the decentralized exchange Uniswap. Data from rwa.xyz, highlighted by Sentora, indicates robust investor interest in this tokenized financial product.
This development underscores a growing institutional narrative around Ethereum and tokenization. The BUIDL fund's listing on a major DeFi platform like Uniswap highlights the increasing interaction between decentralized finance (DeFi) and traditional finance (TradFi). Analysts view BlackRock's dual moves—direct on-chain asset management via a prime broker and the growth of a tokenized fund—as a powerful endorsement of digital asset infrastructure and a potential blueprint for other large institutions.
