During the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Riyadh, BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) CEO Larry Fink said investors have turned to gold and cryptocurrencies as a refuge in the face of growing concerns about global financial stability and fears of devaluation of traditional assets.

Fink emphasized that the search for crypto assets and gold is driven by fear of loss of value and insecurity regarding financial and physical protection. His statements came after gold fell below $4,000 , after reaching an all-time high of $4,377 the previous week.

The executive expressed concern about the United States’ dependence on the sale of Treasury bonds to foreign investors, which account for 30% to 35% of the total. He said any change in this flow could have a “multiplier effect” on the economy and affect the value of the dollar globally.

Fink also addressed the transformations in central banks, which have been expanding their gold reserves. He stated that the biggest question for these institutions is the role of tokenization and digitalization in global finance, especially regarding the speed of adoption of sovereign digital currencies.

The CEO emphasized that the tokenization of financial assets will advance rapidly and that many countries are unprepared to handle the change. He stated that this technological revolution will transform the way capital is allocated and traded globally.

BlackRock currently manages $13.5 trillion in assets, and its iShares Bitcoin Trust holds 805,806 BTC, about 26% more than Strategy, the largest public Bitcoin holder. The fund received $28.1 billion in inflows in 2025, accounting solely for the positive balance of spot Bitcoin ETFs.

Analysts note that without BlackRock’s involvement, the next wave of altcoin ETFs may not replicate the same success. JPMorgan estimates that a Solana ETF could raise between $3 billion and $6 billion, while an XRP ETF could attract up to $8 billion in new investment.

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