BlackRock reported first-quarter 2026 earnings on April 14 with overall profits rising on a surge in investment fees, per the Wall Street Journal. But buried in the numbers is a $20.47 billion crypto portfolio contraction, and the firm's response was to keep buying Bitcoin while quietly trimming its Ethereum exposure.
The $20.47 Billion Drawdown
Between January 1 and March 31, 2026, the combined value of BlackRock's Bitcoin and Ethereum holdings dropped 26.12%, falling from $78.36 billion to $57.89 billion, according to CryptoNews.net. Bitcoin's price slid 25.31% during the quarter, from $88,341 to $65,982. Ethereum fared worse, losing 33.12% and falling from $2,966 to $1,983.
The drawdown erased $16.24 billion from BlackRock's Bitcoin position and $4.23 billion from Ethereum.
More BTC In, Less ETH Out
Here is where the numbers split. While the portfolio bled value, BlackRock added 14,950 BTC to its iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) during Q1, growing holdings from 770,290 to 785,240 coins. That is a 1.94% increase in Bitcoin held, even as the dollar value of those holdings fell by nearly a quarter.
Ethereum got the opposite treatment. The iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) shed 410,750 ETH over the same period, dropping from 3.47 million to 3.06 million tokens. That is an 11.82% reduction in coin terms, compounding the price-driven losses.
The asymmetry is hard to miss. BlackRock treated the Bitcoin drawdown as a buying window and the Ethereum drawdown as an exit ramp.
IBIT's Grip on the ETF Market
IBIT closed March with roughly $54 billion in assets under management and captured approximately $8.4 billion in net inflows during Q1, per Phemex research. That $8.4 billion represents about 45% of the $18.7 billion that flowed into all US spot Bitcoin ETFs combined during the quarter, the strongest quarterly intake since the products launched in January 2024.
IBIT's single largest daily inflow hit $380 million on March 28. The fund now controls roughly 49% of all US spot Bitcoin ETF assets, with Fidelity's FBTC at $20.6 billion and Grayscale's GBTC at $19.5 billion trailing at a distance.
For context, BlackRock's total assets under management across all products were projected to reach $14.2 trillion for Q1, with base fees approaching $21 billion. The firm's crypto holdings represent less than 0.5% of total AUM, but the directional conviction, buying BTC and selling ETH into a falling market, carries outsized signal value for the rest of the institutional world.
What the Ethereum Cut Means
The 410,750 ETH reduction is the largest quarterly outflow from ETHA since the fund launched. Ethereum dropped harder than Bitcoin in Q1 (33% vs. 25%), and BlackRock appears to have reduced exposure rather than averaging down.
This lines up with broader institutional sentiment. JPMorgan noted in its Q1 crypto flows report that overall crypto inflows slowed to $11 billion, with Strategy doing most of the heavy lifting on the Bitcoin side. Ethereum ETP products across all issuers saw net outflows for most of Q1, with XRP products pulling in more capital than ETH funds in several weekly snapshots.
As of April 14, Bitcoin trades at $74,638, up 5.5% in the last 24 hours, and Ethereum sits at $2,385, up 9.2%. Both have recovered from their Q1 lows, but the Q2 rebound arrived after BlackRock's reporting window closed.
The Bigger Earnings Picture
BlackRock's overall business had a strong quarter. Wall Street expected roughly $12 per share on $6.6 billion in revenue, with analysts forecasting net inflows of $130.49 billion across all products, up from $84.17 billion in Q1 2025. The firm's investment advisory fee revenue has grown sharply: base fees entering 2026 run roughly 35% higher than 2024 and 50% higher than 2023.
The crypto portfolio loss barely registers against that scale. What registers is the allocation decision. The world's largest asset manager, with $14 trillion under management, looked at a 25% Bitcoin drawdown and added coins. It looked at a 33% Ethereum drawdown and sold.
Institutional peers tracking BlackRock's moves, from Morgan Stanley with its new MSBT fund to Strategy closing the IBIT gap to 17,000 BTC, now have a fresh data point. BlackRock is not rotating out of crypto. It is rotating within it.
Overview
BlackRock's Q1 2026 earnings revealed a $20.47 billion decline in crypto portfolio value, split between a $16.24 billion Bitcoin drawdown and a $4.23 billion Ethereum loss. The firm responded by adding 14,950 BTC to IBIT while cutting 410,750 ETH from ETHA. IBIT pulled in $8.4 billion in net inflows during Q1, capturing 45% of all US Bitcoin ETF inflows. Overall BlackRock profits rose on higher investment fees, with total AUM projected at $14.2 trillion.
