BlackRock CEO Larry Fink says the leverage washout that crashed crypto markets is over. Bitcoin (BTC) now shows “more stability at these levels,” he told CNBC on July 15.
Fink spoke after BlackRock reported record second-quarter results. Days later, US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) flows turned positive after their worst month since the products launched.
What Larry Fink Said About Bitcoin and Leverage
Fink made the comments while answering a question about leverage risk in South Korea’s stock market. He argued that global markets carry far less leverage today than in 2008 and 2009.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8FrvkJt4nk
Crypto, in his view, was the exception. That excess has now been flushed out, he said, in the selloff that erased roughly $2 trillion from the market this year.
“I was always worried about the leverage in Bitcoin and crypto. There was too much leveraged players in it. That’s why we had to wash out. And I think there’s more stability at these levels here.”
One clarification matters here. Fink offered no Bitcoin price target. His “very bullish” call covers markets broadly over the next 12 months, powered by what he called a technological revolution in margins.
Crypto still sits inside that thesis. Fink also predicted a futures market for computing power, calling the financing of AI infrastructure “the next revolution in finance.” The firm already gives institutions formal Bitcoin allocation guidance of 1% to 2% of portfolios.
ETF Flows Hint the Washout Has Run Its Course
The flow data gives Fink’s stability claim some backing. June was the worst month on record for US spot Bitcoin ETFs, with $4.5 billion in net outflows as bitcoin fell over 20%.
Redemptions then drained roughly $2.7 billion across ten straight sessions in late June. That 10-day outflow streak ended on July 2 with a $221.7 million inflow.
Since July 6, Glassnode data shows a steady run of green days. Daily inflows of $80 million to $260 million have accompanied bitcoin’s climb from under $58,000 to near $65,000 on July 15.
BlackRock’s own fund tells the same story in coins. IBIT’s holdings peaked near 823,000 BTC in mid-May, then shed roughly 90,000 BTC by early July as investors redeemed. Holdings have since flattened around 730,000 BTC, even as ETF trading volumes collapsed to cycle lows days earlier.
Fink’s optimism is not disinterested, however. BlackRock’s record second-quarter results showed $15.34 trillion in assets under management, driven by the iShares business that houses IBIT. A stabilizing bitcoin serves the firm’s flagship crypto product directly.
Read More: BlackRock’s Larry Fink Says Crypto Washout Is Over: Is Bitcoin Stabilizing?
