BlackRock is rolling out a Bitcoin ETF in Europe. Here’s why it’s a hard sell

BlackRock, the $12 trillion asset manager, is looking to spread the Bitcoin word across Europe.

After clinching the American crypto market with more than $56 billion in investment into its IBIT offering, BlackRock is now looking to launch a similar product in Europe, according to a Bloomberg report. BlackRock declined to comment.

There’s just one problem. Who’s going to buy them?

European investors had access to such products for years before Wall Street stormed the market in January 2024 with its Bitcoin ETFs.

And yet, they’ve not nearly gained the same traction.

“Europe [is] barely on [the] leaderboard of spot Bitcoin ETFs by size,” Eric Balchunas, an ETF analyst with Bloomberg, said on X. “Europeans [are] much less into ‘hot sauce’ than US and certain Asian countries.”

European Bitcoin appetite

The top five Bitcoin funds in Europe are worth more than $5.3 billion, according to ETF Screener.

The same five products in the US are worth $107 billion — 20 times larger than those across the Atlantic.

Europe barely on leaderboard of spot bitcoin ETFs by size.. US spot ETFs only year old and have 91%(!) share of world. We kick so much ass when it comes to cost and liquidity. If BlackRock brings even some of the US Terrordome over there, should see success, altho keep in mind… pic.twitter.com/fwFDE84rhS

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) February 5, 2025

Several forces are at work keeping European investors from ploughing into crypto coins.

The average household savings rate within the Eurozone was about 15% in 2024, according to the European Commission. In the US, that figure was closer to 4% in December, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Likewise, European retirement systems aren’t as predicated on earning returns in the capital markets.

“We’re gonna get no help from the government [in the US]. So we’ve all been pushed to learn with funds, to shop for funds, to know what costs are,” Balchunas told DL News in 2024.

Liam Kelly is a Berlin-based reporter for DL News. Got a tip? Email him at liam@dlnews.com.