CLIFFORD CHANCE US LLP
31 WEST 52ND STREET NEW YORK, NY 10019-6131
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Direct Dial: +1 212 878-3180 E-mail: clifford.cone@cliffordchance.com | |
VIA EDGAR
Mr. Justin Dobbie, Esq. Ms. Sonia Bednarowski, Esq. Office of Crypto Assets United States Securities and Exchange Commission Division of Corporation Finance 100 F Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20549 | December 29, 2023 |
Re: | iShares® Bitcoin Trust Amendment No. 5 to Registration Statement on Form S-1 File No. 333-272680 |
Dear Mr. Dobbie and Ms. Bednarowski:
On behalf of our client, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (the “Trust”), we transmit for filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Trust’s Amendment No. 5 to Registration Statement on Form S-1 (the “Amended Registration Statement”) relating to the initial public offering of the the Trust’s shares representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in its net assets.
The Trust supplementally advises the Staff that the prospectus will be updated in a subsequent amendment to the Amended Registration Statement prior to effectiveness to reflect certain additional updates relating to the Sponsor’s Fee, substantially as set forth in Annex A hereto. Defined terms used in Annex A but not otherwise defined have the meanings ascribed to them in the Amended Registration Statement. All page references in Annex A are to the pages of a marked copy of the Amended Registration Statement, which was submitted today by the Trust via EDGAR, unless otherwise specified.
 | CLIFFORD CHANCE US LLP |
Mr. Justin Dobbie, Esq.
Ms. Sonia Bednarowski, Esq.
United States Securities and Exchange Commission
December 29, 2023
Page 2
If you have any questions regarding the foregoing, please do not hesitate to call me at (212) 878-3180 or Jason D. Myers at (212) 878-8324.
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| Sincerely, |
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| /s/ Clifford R. Cone |
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| Clifford R. Cone |
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cc: | Marisa Rolland, BlackRock, Inc. Adithya Attawar, BlackRock, Inc. Jason D. Myers, Clifford Chance US LLP Tae Ho Cho, Clifford Chance US LLP Jesse Overall, Clifford Chance US LLP Etherial Edetan, Clifford Chance US LLP |
CLIFFORD CHANCE US LLP
31 WEST 52ND STREET NEW YORK, NY 10019-6131
TEL +1 212 878 8000 FAX +1 212 878 8375
www.cliffordchance.com |
Annex A
Sponsor’s Fee (on pages 8, 67, 80 and 100):
The Sponsor’s Fee is accrued daily at an annualized rate equal to 0.50% of the net asset value of the Trust and is payable at least quarterly in arrears in U.S. dollars or in-kind or any combination thereof.
Hypothetical Calculation of NAV (on page 68):
Sponsor’s Fee of 0.50% | ||||||||||||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | ||||||||||
Hypothetical bitcoin price | $ | 42,000 | $ | 42,000 | $ | 42,000 | ||||||
Sponsor’s Fee | 0.50 | % | 0.50 | % | 0.50 | % | ||||||
Shares of Trust, beginning | 400,000 | 400,000 | 400,000 | |||||||||
Bitcoins in Trust, beginning | 238.095238 | 236.90476 | 235.72024 | |||||||||
Beginning net asset value of the Trust | $ | 10,000,000 | $ | 9,950,000 | $ | 9,900,250 | ||||||
Bitcoins to be sold to cover the Sponsor’s Fee* | 1.190476 | 1.184524 | 1.178601 | |||||||||
Bitcoins in Trust, ending | 236.90476 | 235.72024 | 234.54164 | |||||||||
Ending net asset value of the Trust | $ | 9,950,000 | $ | 9,900,250 | $ | 9,850,749 | ||||||
Ending NAV | $ | 24.88 | $ | 24.75 | $ | 24.63 | ||||||