BlackRock CEO Larry Fink told CBS 60 Minutes that “there is a role for crypto in the same way there is a role for gold,” marking one of the most explicit endorsements of digital assets from the head of the world’s largest asset manager. The statement, originally aired in October 2025, resurfaced on social media this weekend as Bitcoin trades near $76,575, well below the $115,300 level when Fink made the remarks.
What Larry Fink Actually Said
Fink’s full quote left little room for ambiguity: “There is a role for crypto in the same way there is a role for gold. It is an alternative. For those looking to diversify, this is not a bad asset.” He added a caveat: “I don’t believe it should be a large component of your portfolio.”
The interview aired around October 12-13, 2025, when Bitcoin was trading near $115,300. BlackRock manages over $12 trillion in assets, making Fink’s positioning of crypto alongside gold a statement that carries weight across institutional finance.
Bitcoin Price (May 2026)
$76,575
Down from ~$115,300 at time of Fink’s Oct 2025 interview
The clip resurfaced on May 24, 2026 via @disclosetv on X, reigniting debate about crypto’s role in diversified portfolios. The timing was notable: reports emerged the same week that BlackRock-linked wallets had sold $1.01 billion in Bitcoin across five consecutive trading days.
That juxtaposition created a misleading narrative. The outflows reflect client-driven IBIT ETF redemptions triggered by higher Treasury yields, not a reversal of BlackRock’s directional strategy on Bitcoin.
Why the Gold Comparison Changes the Conversation
Fink’s framing is significant because of what it implies about portfolio construction. Gold occupies a well-understood role in institutional allocation: a store of value, an inflation hedge, a diversifier uncorrelated to equities. Equating crypto with gold signals that digital assets deserve a seat at the same table.
This represents a dramatic reversal. Fink previously called Bitcoin “the domain of money launderers and thieves,” a characterization he publicly acknowledged walking back during the 60 Minutes interview. That pivot from skeptic to advocate mirrors the broader institutional shift that accelerated after the SEC approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024.
BlackRock has skin in both games. The firm manages the iShares Gold ETF and launched the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in 2024, which became one of the fastest ETFs to reach significant scale. Fink is not making an abstract comparison; he is running products on both sides of it.
At the Future Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh on October 28, 2025, Fink expanded on his thesis. He described Bitcoin and crypto as “assets of fear,” saying investors buy them because they are “frightened of the debasement” of their assets and “worried about financial security.” That framing positions crypto not as a speculative tech bet, but as a macro hedge alongside gold.
The current Fear & Greed Index reading of 34, firmly in “Fear” territory, underscores the point. In Fink’s framework, that caution is precisely what drives demand for assets like gold and crypto.
What This Means for Crypto’s Institutional Moment
If crypto occupies the role Fink describes, institutional allocation targets could eventually follow gold’s playbook. Even a fractional shift, where pension funds or sovereign wealth funds allocate 1-2% to Bitcoin as they do to gold, would represent substantial new demand for an asset with a $1.53 trillion market cap.
The regulatory backdrop supports this trajectory. By the time of Fink’s 60 Minutes appearance, the U.S. Senate was already advancing the Genius Act, a stablecoin regulatory framework that signals legislative intent to integrate digital assets into the financial system rather than suppress them. That environment, where stablecoin projects are launching with government partnerships, favors the kind of institutional adoption Fink is describing.
According to a single unconfirmed report, Fink floated a $700,000 Bitcoin price target in January 2025, contingent on sovereign wealth funds allocating 2-5% of their portfolios to the asset. Whether or not that specific figure materializes, the logic reveals how BlackRock models the upside: through allocation percentages, not speculative momentum.
The practical question is whether Fink’s words match the flow data. IBIT saw $1.01 billion in outflows over five trading days in May 2026, which surface-level observers interpreted as contradicting his bullish stance. But ETF redemptions are client-driven; they reflect individual investors repositioning around Treasury yield movements, not a change in BlackRock’s product strategy or Fink’s macro thesis.
For traders watching the crypto market amid broader regulatory shifts across global markets, Fink’s framing offers a useful lens. As even smaller crypto projects face scrutiny over unverified claims, the institutional legitimacy that BlackRock’s endorsement provides matters more than ever.
“There is a role for crypto in the same way there is a role for gold. It is an alternative. For those looking to diversify, this is not a bad asset, but I don’t believe it should be a large component of your portfolio.”
Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, on CBS 60 Minutes (October 2025)
What to monitor next: spot Bitcoin ETF flow data, sovereign wealth fund disclosure filings, and whether the Fed’s rate path shifts the Treasury yield dynamic that drove recent IBIT redemptions. Those are the concrete inputs that will determine whether Fink’s gold comparison translates into gold-sized allocations.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital asset markets carry significant risk. Always do your own research before making decisions.
