Whale dumps $1.29B BlackRock IBIT in record dark-pool trade

A single unknown investor executed a $1.289 billion block sale of BlackRock's IBIT spot bitcoin ETF in a dark pool at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, in what Galaxy head of research Alex Thorn called the largest trade of his career. The dump landed on a day when the 11 U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs bled a combined $333 million, extending a seven-day outflow streak — the second-longest since the funds launched in January 2024.

Why it matters

IBIT itself processed $192.44 million in net redemptions on the day, per SoSoValue data, meaning the bulk of the $1.29B block was absorbed by counterparties inside the fund. That distinction matters: a $1B block sale is not the same as $1B walking out the door. But the trend framing it is harder to wave off. Investors have now pulled $2.26B from the spot BTC ETF complex over the past two weeks, with the seven-day streak trailing only an eight-day run in late August 2024 (-$1.2B) and an eight-day run in February 2025 (-$3.3B) for the all-time record. The composition of the exit — large blocks rather than steady retail trickle — has historically marked moments when sophisticated holders re-evaluate positioning.

Market impact

BTC has already paid a price: the asset pulled back below $77,000 from highs above $82,000 on May 6, per CoinDesk data, while gold and precious-metals ETFs absorbed over $2B in fresh inflows. The relative-rotation move has broken bitcoin's three-month outperformance against gold, a structural signal often read by macro desks as a risk-off tilt within the alternative-asset complex. The next inflection is mechanical: the eight-day outflow record now sits one trading session away, and the flows that accompany that print will likely set the near-term tone for spot price action.