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Asset manager Ark Invest has sold $15.9 million U.S. worth of its own Bitcoin (CRYPTO: $BTC ) exchange-traded fund (ETF) as the price of the largest cryptocurrency declines.

The firm led by investor Cathie Wood offloaded its ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (NYSE: $ARKB ) from its investment funds as the price of the crypto declines from its early October highs.

To ensure diversification, Ark does not let any individual holding take up more than 10% of its fund portfolios.

Ark's spot Bitcoin ETF has generated around $1.1 billion U.S. of net inflows since it was launched in January 2024.

The fund currently has $2.5 billion U.S. of assets under management (AUM), according to market data.

Ark Invest's sale comes as the price of Bitcoin falls below the key support level of $80,000 U.S. Early on Oct. 27, BTC was trading at $79,700 U.S.

So far in October, Bitcoin's price has declined 6%, dropping from a high of $86,000 U.S. at the start of the month.

BTC has been under pressure as investors grow worried about a litany of issues, ranging from a bubble in artificial intelligence (A.I.) stocks to rising oil prices and bond yields.

Bitcoin is also slumping as investors await the latest interest rate decision from the U.S. Federal Reserve on Oct. 28.

The central bank is widely expected to raise interest rates 25-basis points by year's end. Higher interest rates are a negative for risk assets such as cryptocurrencies.

Analysts say that Bitcoin needs to remain above $80,000 U.S. to achieve a sustained rally. The cryptocurrency's price gained more than 40% in this year's third quarter.

Ark Invest is privately held and its stock does not trade on a public exchange.