BlackRock CEO Calls Gold and Crypto ‘Assets of Fear’ as Prices Fall

Highlights:

• BlackRock CEO says investors turn to gold and crypto amid economic uncertainty.
• Fink warns the US risks heavily relying on foreign buyers for Treasuries.
• He said the tokenization of financial assets is growing fast, but many countries remain unprepared.

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said investors are buying gold and cryptocurrencies because of concerns over the declining value of traditional assets. Speaking at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Saudi Arabia, Fink described these holdings as “assets of fear.” He explained that people often turn to such assets when concerned about losing money or safety. 

Fink said, “You own these assets because you’re frightened of the debasement of your assets. You’re worried about your financial security. You’re worried about your physical security.”

JUST IN: $13 trillion BlackRock CEO Larry Fink says you own crypto if you believe “countries are going to continue to debase their currency.” pic.twitter.com/n1YCN3GQaq

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) October 28, 2025

Fink Raises Concerns Over Dollar Dependence

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink highlighted concerns over the US’s heavy reliance on foreign investors buying its Treasuries. Speaking at the FII panel, he noted that about 30% to 35% of Treasury sales still go overseas, calling it a major risk. Fink warned that any shift in this trend could significantly impact the economy due to the country’s dependence on foreign capital. He suggested that increasing private investment could help lessen this reliance.

Additionally, Fink noted that central banks seem increasingly cautious, with many raising their gold reserves. He suggested that these institutions are closely watching how tokenization and digital currencies could affect the financial system. He emphasized that central banks need to consider the speed of currency digitization, its possible effects on the US dollar, and potential impacts on payment systems.

BlackRock CEO Highlights Fast Growth of Tokenization

Fink said that financial tokenization is moving fast worldwide, but many countries are not ready. He noted that people talk a lot about AI, but not enough about how quickly financial assets will be tokenized. Fink added that this trend could change global finance over time. He believes most traditional assets may be tokenized in the next few decades.

Fink’s comments indicate that people are using gold and cryptocurrency to protect their wealth in uncertain times. Gold prices go up and down, and Bitcoin is still very volatile, but both are becoming part of long-term plans for investors and central banks. He added that as the financial world changes, global institutions need to move quickly to keep up with new technology.

BlackRock itself holds a large amount of Bitcoin, managing 805,806 BTC through its iShares Bitcoin Trust fund, about 26% more than Strategy, the largest public Bitcoin holder. This year, it attracted $28.1 billion in new investments, making it the sole fund with positive year-to-date inflows. This drove the total inflows for spot Bitcoin ETFs to a combined $26.9 billion. Excluding BlackRock’s contribution, spot Bitcoin ETFs actually experienced a net outflow of $1.27 billion so far this year, according to Vetle Lunde, head of research at K33.

No BlackRock, no party?

BTC ETFs are up $26.9bn YTD, yet $28.1bn stems from BlackRock’s IBIT. Ex-IBIT, flows are negative.

BlackRock is absent from the imminent altcoin ETF wave. Opportunity for competitors to secure strong flows, but on net, likely limiting for overall flows. pic.twitter.com/erAERGLxX2

— Vetle Lunde (@VetleLunde) October 28, 2025