Today in crypto: BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) is leading November’s record ETF exodus, with $2.47 billion in outflows, accounting for 63% of the $3.79 billion pulled from US spot Bitcoin ETFs. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s appearance at a newly opened Pubkey in Washington, D.C. sparked excitement across the Bitcoin community, and a new report shows a sharp drop in enforcement actions under the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s new leadership.
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF sheds $2.47 billion in November as outflows hit record $3.79 billion
US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds saw another sharp reversal on Thursday, erasing a brief moment of relief earlier in the week.
After breaking a five-day outflow streak with $75.4 million in inflows on Wednesday, the funds were hit with fresh redemptions of $903 million Thursday — the biggest outflow day in November and one of the largest single-day outflows since the products were launched in January 2024, according to Farside Investors.
The $3.79 billion withdrawal puts November on track to be the worst month on record for US spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETF outflows if the remaining days fail to offset this month’s redemptions.
The figure has already surpassed February’s $3.56 billion, which held the record for the largest monthly outflow since the ETFs debuted.
Investment giant BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) ETF is the largest driver of the historic November outflows. The product has seen $2.47 billion in net redemptions so far this month, accounting for roughly 63% of the total $3.79 billion withdrawn from all US spot BTC ETFs.
Bitcoiners lose their mind after Scott Bessent walks into a Bitcoin bar
The Bitcoin community lit up on Thursday after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made an unannounced appearance at the launch of Washington’s new Bitcoin-themed bar, Pubkey.
“Having the Secretary of the Treasury at the Pubkey DC launch seems like a moment I could easily look back on and say ‘wow, it was all so obvious,” Bitcoin treasury company Strive chief investment officer Ben Werkman said in an X post on Thursday.
Steven Lubka, Nakamoto’s vice president of investor relations, called it “the sign you have been waiting for.”
Many other prominent Bitcoiners, including Bitcoin analyst Fred Krueger, Gemini Chief of Staff Jeff Tiller, Bitcoin podcaster Natalie Brunell, and Bitcoin Policy Institute co-founder David Zell, also viewed Bessent’s appearance as a hugely positive sign for Bitcoin.
SEC enforcement actions fall sharply under Chair Atkins: Report
The US SEC has taken a noticeably more restrained approach since Paul Atkins became chair, with total enforcement actions falling by about 30% in fiscal 2025, according to a new report from Cornerstone Research.
The broad decline in enforcement activity was “consistent with the general pattern for other fiscal years when the SEC administration changed,” the report noted.
Regulatory actions involving crypto firms also declined. That trend was expected after the SEC dropped several investigations and lawsuits following Gary Gensler’s departure. The report specifically pointed to the agency’s case against Coinbase, which was dismissed in February.
“Chair Atkins has signaled that a ‘top priority’ of his administration will be ‘to provide a firm regulatory foundation for digital assets through a rational, coherent, and principled approach,’” the report said.
