BlackRock Adds Anchorage Digital as a Second Bitcoin Custodian for IBIT
BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust added Anchorage Digital Bank as an additional Bitcoin custodian while retaining Coinbase, diversifying the custody structure behind the largest U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF.
On April 7, 2025, BlackRock Fund Advisors, acting for the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF, entered into a custody agreement with Anchorage Digital Bank. The agreement authorized Anchorage to maintain segregated accounts capable of receiving, safeguarding, and maintaining the trust's Bitcoin.
Coinbase's existing custody arrangement remained in place. The change therefore did not replace the trust's original custodian; it added a second qualified custody provider and gave the sponsor discretion over how Bitcoin could be allocated between them.
For a spot Bitcoin ETF whose scale had made it a major institutional gateway to Bitcoin, the addition reduced reliance on a single custody relationship and broadened the regulated custody infrastructure supporting the product. The change illustrated how institutional Bitcoin market structure was becoming more redundant and specialized after the first year of U.S. spot ETF trading.