BlackRock executive says BTC ETF growth is driven by financial utility, not custody

Institutional interest in Bitcoin ETFs is being driven not by simple custody but by financialization, Jay Jacobs, BlackRock’s head of U.S. equity ETFs, said in a podcast interview, according to Crypto Briefing. Jacobs said the main force behind Bitcoin’s integration into traditional financial markets through the ETF structure is not secure storage, but making it usable like other financial assets, including as collateral, for options trading, and for borrowing.