Menu

ETFs & Funds

BlackRock’s IBIT drove spot bitcoin ETF inflows to largest daily total in a month

BlackRock’s IBIT drove spot bitcoin ETF inflows to largest daily total in a month

, , , , , , , ,

Spot bitcoin ETF flows are the clearest daily read on US institutional demand, and Monday’s total came from a single issuer. BlackRock’s IBIT took in more than the whole category’s net figure, which matters for readers judging how broad the bid really is.

  • U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs took in $526.6 million on Monday, their largest daily net inflow in nearly a month.
  • BlackRock’s IBIT drew $665.2 million while Fidelity’s FBTC lost $83.6 million and Grayscale’s GBTC shed $54.9 million.
  • Ether funds lost $103.3 million, and bitcoin funds remain about $90.5 million negative for October despite the rebound.
  • $526.6M Monday net inflow into U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs, biggest in nearly a month
  • $665.2M IBIT inflow, its largest single day since October 7 last year
  • $714.7M combined bitcoin ETF inflow on September 22, the last larger day
  • $103.3M ether fund outflow Monday, a fourth straight session of withdrawals

U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds took in a net $526.6 million on Monday (October 19), the largest daily inflow in nearly a month, CoinDesk reported. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) accounted for all of it. The data arrived Tuesday (October 20), with bitcoin holding near $82,000 as the Nasdaq rebounded more than 1%, according to CoinDesk’s market coverage.

IBIT’s $665.2 million inflow is its biggest since October 7 last year

IBIT pulled in $665.2 million, its largest daily inflow since Oct. 7 last year, according to SoSoValue data. That single-fund figure is larger than the category’s $526.6 million net total, because other products lost money.

Fidelity’s FBTC lost $83.6 million, and Grayscale’s GBTC shed $54.9 million. Every other fund in the category recorded zero net flow.

The CoinDesk report includes no comment from BlackRock, Fidelity or Grayscale. The motives behind Monday’s split are therefore not documented.

September 22 remains the last day to top Monday, at $714.7 million

The combined bitcoin funds last drew more on Sept. 22, when they added $714.7 million. Monday’s total sat about $188.1 million below that mark, so the day was large for recent weeks but not a record for the period.

The inflow more than erased last week’s $228.5 million of withdrawals, which covered October 12 to 16. Even so, the funds remain about $90.5 million in the red for October, according to CoinDesk calculations using SoSoValue’s figures.

Ether funds shed $103.3 million, and Tuesday’s session will test both trends

Ether products moved the other way, losing $103.3 million in their fourth consecutive session of outflows. BlackRock’s ETHA accounted for $95.4 million of the withdrawals, according to SoSoValue. That is more than 90% of the category’s total.

The same issuer therefore led buying in bitcoin and selling in ether on Monday. Neither flow has been explained by BlackRock in the reporting available.

The BlockWest read. We read Monday as an IBIT story more than a category story. With FBTC and GBTC in outflow and the remaining funds flat, the $526.6 million headline measures one product’s pull, not broad appetite. Allocators weighing the data should watch whether other issuers post inflows before treating the rebound as a category-wide shift in demand for bitcoin exposure.

The next SoSoValue print, covering Tuesday (October 20) trading, will show whether IBIT’s inflow repeats and whether ETHA’s outflows stretch to a fifth session.

Bitcoin trades 32% below its October 2025 record, a milder decline than prior cycles

Bitcoin trades 32% below its October 2025 record, a milder decline than prior cycles

, , , , , , , ,

Bitcoin is trading 32% below the record high it set exactly a year ago, a far shallower decline than the 70% to 82% drops that followed its three previous cycle peaks. The milder correction points to a structural shift in who owns bitcoin and how they trade it, from leveraged retail speculation toward steadier institutional ETF flows.

  • Bitcoin hit a record above $126,000 on October 6, 2025, and now trades at $85,453, down 32%.
  • At its cycle low of roughly $59,000 on June 30, bitcoin was down more than 53% from its peak, versus 77% to 85% drawdowns in past bear markets.
  • A single macro-driven sell-off on October 10, 2025 triggered more than $19 billion in crypto derivatives liquidations, clearing out leverage early in the cycle.
  • $126,000 bitcoin’s record high set on October 6, 2025
  • 32% current decline versus 70-82% after past cycle peaks
  • 53% maximum cycle drawdown versus 77-85% historically
  • 5.7% 30-year Treasury yield, highest since April 2002

A year ago on October 6, 2025, bitcoin touched an all-time high above $126,000. According to CoinDesk reported, the token now trades at $85,453, a 32% retreat that would rattle traditional markets but looks mild by bitcoin’s own history.

After the 2013 peak, bitcoin was down 69.7% a year later. Following the December 2017 top it was down 82.3%, and a year after the November 2021 high it had fallen 74.6%, per CoinDesk’s calculations.

Bitcoin’s 32% drop dwarfed by prior cycle declines of up to 82%

The shallower anniversary figure matches a milder bear market overall. Bitcoin’s low point came just below $59,000 on June 30, a drawdown of just over 53% from the peak, compared with declines of 77% to 85% in earlier cycles. The trough also arrived roughly nine months after the top this cycle, earlier than in past downturns where the bottom often landed around the one-year mark or later.

Tim Sun, senior researcher at HashKey Group, told CoinDesk the compressed timeline is the defining feature of this cycle.

The most notable changes are the significantly shortened duration of the drawdown and the reduced time spent at the bottom.

Tim Sun, senior researcher, HashKey Group

Sun attributed the shift to who is buying. Retail traders and leverage drove prior bull runs that ended in crashes and exchange failures, as seen in 2022, while the 2023 to 2025 uptrend was powered by institutional inflows through ETFs, asset managers, family offices and corporations.

$19 billion liquidation event unwound leverage in a single day

Most of the cycle’s leverage was cleared out on October 10, 2025, when a macro-driven sell-off triggered more than $19 billion in crypto derivatives liquidations. Temporary pricing deviations on Binance for tokens including USDe, wBETH and BNSOL added to the stress as exchanges’ auto-deleveraging mechanisms forcibly closed profitable positions.

Griffin Ardern, co-founder and volatility desk portfolio manager at Primal Fund, said institutional ETF flows behave differently from retail speculation because allocation money rebalances toward target weights rather than chasing momentum. With leverage largely gone after the October selloff and never fully rebuilt, Ardern said the market took nine months to grind out a 53% decline rather than collapsing 80% in a few months of cascading liquidations.

Bitcoin’s annualized volatility now hovers around 40%, Sun said, well below its long-term historical levels above 80%. Ardern pointed to similar compression in the options market, where bitcoin’s DVOL implied-volatility index has been pinned around 35 points, describing the likely path forward as a staircase pattern of gradual gains, air pockets and fast repairs rather than a parabolic run.

30-year Treasury yield at 5.7% could determine bitcoin’s next move

Sun has not ruled out sharp rallies, pointing to bitcoin’s capped 21 million supply and heavy concentration among long-term holders. Large ETF inflows, a rapid improvement in macro liquidity or concentrated short covering could still produce what he called non-linear surges in price.

Ardern’s bigger concern is positioning rather than price. Implied volatility sits near its lowest percentile on record and one-year options skew remains neutral to bearish, meaning traders are not yet paying up for upside exposure even as they accept the shallow-drawdown narrative.

Ardern tied the next move to the bond market rather than bitcoin’s own chart. The 30-year Treasury yield recently hit 5.7%, its highest level since April 2002, and has climbed more than 80 basis points this year, raising the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets like bitcoin and gold. The Treasury announced an expanded bond buyback program in August to slow the rise in yields, and bitcoin rallied from roughly $64,000 to nearly $80,000 in the days that followed, though yields have continued climbing since. Ardern compared current conditions to the Nasdaq between 1994 and 1999, when slowing policy stretched the cycle and every interim correction stayed shallow, a run that ended with the index losing nearly 78% over roughly two years after its March 2000 peak.

The BlockWest read. The real signal for allocators is not bitcoin’s drawdown math but the derivatives positioning Ardern describes: cheap downside protection and unpaid-for upside exposure. For corporate treasuries and ETF-linked funds now holding meaningful bitcoin allocations, the 30-year yield, not bitcoin’s own chart, has become the variable worth hedging against before any rebalancing decision.

Ardern’s warning centers on the long end of the Treasury curve. If the 30-year yield’s recent defense near 5.7% continues failing, he said this cycle’s shallow drawdowns may not hold, leaving open whether bitcoin’s next move tracks fiscal stress in Washington rather than crypto-specific demand.

Ethereum spot ETF investors withdraw $205.88 million over five sessions

Ethereum spot ETF investors withdraw $205.88 million over five sessions

, , , , , , ,

Ethereum’s institutional and derivatives signals are pulling in different directions even as the token holds steady above $2,700. US spot ETF investors are pulling capital for a fifth straight session while traders in the futures market grow more aggressively bearish, a split that BlockWest readers should watch for clues on where the next price move originates.

  • US spot ETH ETFs posted $50.76 million in net outflows on Oct. 5, the fifth consecutive losing session.
  • Santiment’s Age Consumed metric spiked to 580 million token-days on Sept. 30, about nine times the September weekday average.
  • Exchange balances barely moved, rising roughly 18,000 ETH then falling about 21,000 ETH against 5.9 million ETH held on venues.
  • $205.88M net ETF outflows since Sept. 29, a five-day losing streak
  • 0.66 Ethereum’s leverage ratio, its lowest reading in seven months
  • 43% rise in Binance ETH open interest since Aug. 6
  • $3.30B swing in Binance’s net taker volume from Aug. 21 to Oct. 5

US spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds recorded $50.76 million in net outflows on Oct. 5, according to SoSoValue data. The withdrawal extended a losing streak to five straight sessions and brought total outflows since Sept. 29 to $205.88 million, trimming cumulative net inflows to roughly $13.75 billion. The retreat followed a $17.1 million inflow on Sept. 28 and has unfolded while ETH trades near $2,711, pulling one of the market’s steadiest sources of incremental buying into reverse. The story was first reported by CryptoSlate.

ETF outflows hit $205.88 million since Sept. 29

The five-session ETF slide marks a reversal from the single-day inflow recorded just before it began. Cumulative net inflows into US spot ETH products remain near $13.75 billion, so the recent outflows represent a small fraction of total holdings even as the trend draws attention.

ETF flows are one of three signals CryptoSlate’s analysis points to as pulling Ethereum in different directions. The others involve onchain coin movement and leveraged derivatives positioning, both of which show activity that has not yet translated into broad selling pressure across exchanges.

Dormant coin activity jumps without a matching rise in exchange supply

Blockchain analytics firm Santiment reported that Ethereum’s Age Consumed metric, which tracks previously dormant coins moving onchain weighted by how long they sat untouched, surged to 580 million token-days on Sept. 30 in a post on X. That reading was roughly nine times the September weekday average and the highest since June 2, a level typically associated with long-term holders repositioning assets.

Aggregate exchange balances, however, barely shifted. Ethereum held on exchanges rose about 18,000 ETH on Sept. 30 before falling roughly 21,000 ETH the next day, against approximately 5.9 million ETH held on trading venues overall.

The contrast is notable against the last comparable spike. When Age Consumed last jumped this sharply on June 2, exchange balances rose by more than 140,000 ETH, a much larger movement than the net change seen in late September. That gap leaves open the possibility the recent activity reflected custody transfers, staking movements, or wallet reorganizations rather than coordinated selling by older holders.

Leverage ratio falls to seven-month low as sellers cross the spread

Derivatives data from CryptoQuant’s analysis shows Ethereum’s Estimated Leverage Ratio fell to 0.66, the lowest in seven months, with the ratio near 0.68 on Binance and 0.64 on OKX. CryptoQuant contributor Arab Chain interprets the decline as reduced appetite for heavily leveraged positions while ETH trades around $2,700, a shift that could ease liquidation risk if it continues.

Binance open interest in ETH, however, remains near $3.3 billion, up roughly 43% from about $2.3 billion on Aug. 6. Cumulative Net Taker Volume on Binance swung from $1.94 billion on Aug. 21 to negative $1.36 billion on Oct. 5, a reversal of $3.30 billion and the weakest reading since Aug. 6, showing sellers increasingly crossing the spread to execute trades.

ETH still trades roughly 44% above its Aug. 6 level despite that selling pressure. The divergence between falling CVD and rising open interest lows suggests buyers have so far absorbed aggressive sell orders without breaking the broader price structure.

The BlockWest read. The real signal here is not direction but fragility. With ETF demand retreating and exchange supply essentially flat, ETH’s price is being held up almost entirely by short sellers getting absorbed rather than by fresh institutional buying. Any shift toward persistently negative funding would hand short covering an outsized role in the next move, making allocators watching ETH exposure more dependent on derivatives mechanics than on spot demand.

Whether the balance tips toward broader selling or a short squeeze depends on two things CryptoSlate’s data has not yet resolved: whether ETF outflows persist alongside a meaningful rise in exchange balances, or whether reserves stay contained while ETH keeps absorbing negative derivatives flow. Funding rates and the next SoSoValue ETF flow reports will be the first places that answer shows up.

Bitcoin reclaims $86,000 as ETF buyers return and short sellers cover positions

Bitcoin reclaims $86,000 as ETF buyers return and short sellers cover positions

, , , , , , ,

Bitcoin’s overnight jump back above $86,000 shows how quickly sentiment can flip when ETF buyers and short sellers move in the same direction at once. For BlockWest readers watching flows into regulated products, the bigger question is whether Wednesday’s inflow reversal can survive Friday’s jobs report and the inflation backdrop that just knocked the same rally down once already.

  • Bitcoin traded at $86,325.44 at 08:40 UTC on October 2, up 3.67% over 24 hours.
  • US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $102.7 million in net inflows on October 1, reversing the prior session’s outflows.
  • CoinNess estimated 91.13% of Bitcoin futures liquidations over 24 hours involved short positions, a sign of forced covering.
  • $86,325 Bitcoin’s price at 08:40 UTC, up 3.67% in 24 hours
  • $102.7M Oct. 1 net ETF inflow versus the prior session’s outflow
  • $135.47M Bitcoin futures liquidated in 24 hours per CoinGlass
  • 3.0% August core PCE inflation year over year, per BEA data

Bitcoin reclaimed $86,000 by the morning of October 2 as demand for US spot Bitcoin ETFs recovered and short sellers closed losing positions, according to reporting by CryptoSlate. The token traded at $86,325.44 at 08:40 UTC, up 3.67% over the prior 24 hours and above the September 30 rebound that had carried it past $85,000 before fading under $84,000 on the back of fresh inflation data. On Coinbase’s BTC-USD market, the rolling 24-hour range at 08:42 UTC ran from $83,353.87 to $86,885.28, with the last trade printing at $86,377.70.

Ether, XRP and Solana also advanced in CryptoSlate’s market rankings, putting Bitcoin’s bounce inside a broader rise across major tokens.

ETF inflows of $102.7 million reverse the prior session’s outflow

US spot Bitcoin ETFs took in $102.7 million in net new money on October 1, according to Farside Investors’ flow data, following a session of net redemptions. The aggregate number masked a split market: BlackRock’s IBIT fund drew fresh capital even as Fidelity’s FBTC and several smaller ETFs saw investors pull money out.

That the inflows outweighed the redemptions is what moved the daily total back into positive territory, not a uniform return of buyers across every product. A single day of net inflows after an outflow session weakens the case that the prior redemptions marked the start of a sustained drawdown, but the mixed picture across individual funds means the signal remains limited. Another session of inflows, or a repeat of October 1’s divergence, would tell a more definitive story about how durable the renewed demand actually is.

Short liquidations of $135.47 million help the rally move faster

CoinGlass data at 08:42 UTC showed about $70.58 billion in Bitcoin futures turnover over 24 hours, against roughly $6.35 billion in spot turnover across its tracked markets, a gap that illustrates how much of Bitcoin’s daily volume runs through leveraged derivatives rather than direct spot buying. The same window showed about $135.47 million in liquidated futures positions. CoinNess separately estimated that 91.13% of the day’s Bitcoin futures liquidations involved short positions.

That imbalance points to forced exits from bearish bets rather than fresh conviction buying as the accelerant. As Bitcoin’s price rose, leveraged shorts lost the collateral supporting them, and closing those positions added buying pressure that can push a rally further and faster than spot demand alone would.

That feedback effect fades once the vulnerable short positions are gone. What happens next depends on whether ETF inflows and spot demand, rather than forced covering, keep the price above $86,000.

August’s 3.0% core inflation reading sets up Friday’s jobs test

The Bureau of Economic Analysis’s August Personal Income and Outlays report, released Wednesday (September 30), put core PCE inflation at 0.2% for the month and 3.0% year over year, with headline PCE inflation at 0.3% monthly and 3.4% annually. The same report showed personal income rising $66.6 billion, or 0.2%, in August, driven by compensation and government social benefits including Medicare and Social Security payments. Disposable personal income rose $68.6 billion (0.3%), while personal consumption expenditures jumped $190.8 billion (0.9%), split between $114.1 billion in goods spending and $76.7 billion in services.

Personal saving stood at $990.2 billion in August, putting the saving rate at 4.1% of disposable income, a detail the BEA report frames against a broader annual revision to the national accounts dating back to January 2021. The bureau’s next release is scheduled for October 29 at 8:30 a.m. EDT, and it will show whether August’s compensation-driven income gain and 0.9% spending jump persisted into September or cooled.

Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson said Thursday (October 1) in remarks posted by the Federal Reserve that assessing further policy adjustments could take more time, while also flagging upside inflation risks and noting the Fed’s September move to raise rates a quarter point to a 3.75% to 4% range. ISM’s September manufacturing report, also issued October 1, showed its prices index climbing to 77.9 from 71.1 the prior month, even as the manufacturing PMI held in expansionary territory at 54.5.

The BlockWest read. The split between BlackRock’s inflows and Fidelity’s redemptions matters more than the net $102.7 million figure. Allocators choosing IBIT over FBTC on the same day suggests institutional money is becoming selective about which wrapper holds exposure, not simply whether to hold it. If that divergence persists past Friday’s jobs data, it points to consolidation around the largest, most liquid fund rather than broad-based conviction returning to the asset class.

September’s US jobs report is scheduled for 12:30 UTC on October 2, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics release calendar, arriving hours after the overnight rally. Whether Bitcoin holds above $86,000 and ETFs keep taking in net inflows through that release will determine if this recovery outlasts the September 30 breakout that failed under the same inflation pressure.

XRP and Solana ETFs reach record inflow totals in weekly rally

XRP and Solana ETFs reach record inflow totals in weekly rally

, , , , , , , ,

Spot exchange-traded funds tracking XRP and Solana both notched fresh milestones last week, with XRP ETFs closing at a record cumulative total and SOL funds logging their best single-day haul since launching nearly a year ago. The dual rally shows institutional demand broadening beyond bitcoin and ether into the next tier of altcoin-linked products.

  • XRP ETFs posted $75.89 million in net inflows for the week ended Friday (September 25), their best week in a month.
  • SOL ETFs took in $86.67 million on Friday alone, the largest single-day inflow since the funds launched nearly a year ago.
  • Bitwise leads both categories, holding $677 million in cumulative XRP fund inflows and $1.22 billion in SOL fund inflows.
  • $75.89M XRP ETF weekly net inflows, best in a month
  • $1.79B cumulative XRP ETF inflows, a new all-time high
  • $86.67M SOL ETF single-day inflow, a record since launch
  • $188.22M SOL ETF weekly inflows, second-best week ever after October’s $199.21M launch week

Spot ETFs tied to Ripple’s XRP token and Solana’s SOL pushed to new highs during the trading week that ran from Monday (September 21) through Friday (September 25), according to data reported by CryptoPotato. XRP funds added $75.89 million over the five sessions, while SOL products pulled in $188.22 million, the largest weekly total of 2026 for that asset class. The gains lifted cumulative inflows for both fund groups to record levels, at $1.79 billion for XRP and $1.61 billion for SOL.

$75.89M week lifts XRP ETF total past $1.79 billion

The week did not start with momentum. SoSoData showed zero reportable flows into XRP ETFs on Monday, following net outflows the prior Thursday and Friday that had cut the previous week’s total to just $9.56 million, less than half the roughly $19 million pace seen earlier in September.

Sentiment reversed on Tuesday. Investors added $20.02 million that day, followed by $18.04 million on Wednesday, $14.89 million on Thursday, and $22.65 million on Friday.

The five-day run pushed the weekly total to $75.89 million, the strongest performance in a month, and extended the funds’ streak of positive weekly flows to ten consecutive weeks. Bitwise’s XRP fund remains the category leader with $677 million in cumulative net inflows, ahead of Franklin Templeton’s XRPZ at $501 million and Canary Capital’s XRPC at $489.37 million.

$86.67M Friday inflow is largest ever for SOL ETFs

Solana funds outpaced their XRP counterparts throughout the week. Inflows opened at $26.10 million on Monday, rose to $28.87 million on Tuesday, eased to $13.77 million on Wednesday, then jumped to $32.81 million on Thursday before Friday’s surge of $86.67 million, the single-best daily inflow since the SOL ETFs launched roughly a year ago.

The $188.22 million weekly total marks a 2026 high for the category. It trails only the funds’ October launch week, when $199.21 million came in during the first days of trading.

Cumulative SOL ETF inflows now stand at $1.61 billion, a fresh all-time high. Bitwise again dominates the field with $1.22 billion in cumulative net inflows, well ahead of Fidelity’s FSOL at $231.35 million and Grayscale’s GSOL at $164.15 million.

Bitwise’s lead widens across both fund categories

Bitwise now controls the largest share of assets in both the XRP and SOL ETF markets, holding $677 million and $1.22 billion respectively against smaller totals from Franklin Templeton, Canary Capital, Fidelity and Grayscale. That concentration means the pace of future weekly flows will hinge heavily on whether Bitwise’s funds keep attracting the bulk of new allocator interest.

Neither CryptoPotato’s report nor the underlying SoSoValue data addressed why flows accelerated specifically on Thursday and Friday of the week in question, leaving the immediate catalyst for the late-week surge unaddressed in the reporting.

The BlockWest read. The gap between Bitwise’s totals and every other issuer’s suggests allocators are still treating these ETFs as a single-brand trade rather than shopping across fee structures or custody arrangements. If that concentration holds as SOL funds approach their one-year anniversary in October, smaller issuers like Fidelity and Grayscale will need a distinct pitch, not just a cheaper expense ratio, to pull meaningful share away.

SOL ETFs reach their first full year of trading in October, a milestone that will test whether Friday’s record $86.67 million day was a one-off or the start of a sustained shift in allocator demand, a question the current data does not yet answer.

Bitcoin spot ETFs swing to positive year-to-date flows after $2.39B weekly inflow

Bitcoin spot ETFs swing to positive year-to-date flows after $2.39B weekly inflow

, , , , , , , ,

Bitcoin spot ETFs have swung from a $5.5 billion year-to-date deficit in June to a $925 million surplus, driven by $2.39 billion in inflows during a single week. This reversal signals renewed institutional demand after months of outflows and suggests the asset class momentum may be shifting ahead of potential regulatory developments.

  • Bitcoin ETFs posted $2.39 billion in net inflows during the week ending Saturday (September 26), the strongest weekly performance in months.
  • Cumulative year-to-date inflows for spot Bitcoin ETFs now stand at $925 million, reversing a $5.5 billion deficit recorded at the end of June.
  • Ethereum spot ETFs attracted $689.88 million in the same week, bringing their cumulative net inflows to $13.94 billion and erasing all prior-week losses.
  • $2.39B Net inflows to Bitcoin ETFs in week ending September 26
  • $925M Year-to-date net inflows for Bitcoin ETFs versus $5.5B deficit in June
  • $4.51B Record outflows from Bitcoin ETFs during June alone
  • $13.94B Cumulative net inflows to Ethereum spot ETFs through September

Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have reversed months of investor withdrawal, turning year-to-date flows positive for the first time since early summer, according to CryptoPotato. The turnaround came after a week of strong inflows that began Wednesday (September 23) with nearly $1 billion entering the funds in a single trading session, a multi-month daily record. The momentum carried through the remainder of the week, though at a declining pace, with investors adding $714.75 million on Thursday (September 24), $346.98 million on Friday (September 25), $190.65 million on Saturday (September 26), and $134.47 million on Sunday (September 27). The cumulative total pushed year-to-date Bitcoin ETF flows into positive territory at $925 million, a striking reversal from the conditions prevailing in June.

Bitcoin ETF recovers from June’s record $4.51 billion outflow

The recovery gains weight when measured against the severity of the earlier decline. In June, Bitcoin ETFs suffered a record $4.51 billion in outflows, and May had seen a painful $2.43 billion leave the funds. Those two months combined created a $5.5 billion year-to-date deficit by the end of June, seemingly insurmountable for the remainder of 2026.

The narrative shifted sharply in July, though gains were modest at first with only $172 million in inflows.

August accelerated the recovery with $3.52 billion entering the funds, and September maintained momentum with $2.7 billion through the week ending Sunday (September 27). The weekly surge of $2.39 billion represents the strongest sustained inflow performance in recent months.

Ethereum ETFs post $689.88 million weekly inflow and hit new multi-month high

Ethereum spot ETFs matched the bullish sentiment, gaining $689.88 million during the same week and erasing all losses from the prior trading week by a wide margin. The inflows began strong on Wednesday (September 23) with $270 million and continued in positive territory through Sunday (September 27). The cumulative net inflows for Ethereum spot ETFs now stand at $13.94 billion, a new multi-month high.

The underlying Ethereum asset touched $2,800 during the week but was stopped there and now trades at around $100 lower.

Bitcoin remains 40% below all-time high despite institutional demand surge

The price-flow divergence has drawn attention from market observers. Bitcoin remains more than 40% away from its all-time high, yet spot cumulative ETF flows are only 10% away from their all-time highs, according to commentary posted Saturday (September 26) by Crypto Rover, a cryptocurrency analyst.

Institutional money is accumulating like never before and has shortened the bear market dramatically.

Crypto Rover, cryptocurrency analyst

The gap between ETF inflows and price appreciation suggests that institutional investors are positioning for upside before Bitcoin reaches new highs, potentially indicating confidence in further gains ahead.

The BlockWest read. The week’s inflows reveal that institutions have returned after a summer of uncertainty. With ETF flows approaching record cumulative levels while the asset price lags, allocators face a timing question: whether current positioning reflects genuine conviction about coming appreciation or merely profit-taking on a relief bounce from June’s lows. The next test comes if weekly inflows sustain above $1 billion.

The sustainability of these flows through early October will determine whether the summer reversal becomes a lasting trend. Crypto Rover’s assertion that institutional accumulation has accelerated will be tested by the next high-volume trading week and any material moves in Bitcoin’s price that might trigger fresh institutional positioning decisions.

Coin Metrics corrects 19 months of Bitcoin ETF wallet data without disclosing changes

Coin Metrics corrects 19 months of Bitcoin ETF wallet data without disclosing changes

, , , , , , ,

Coin Metrics has quietly corrected 19 months of Bitcoin ETF wallet data across dozens of daily and hourly series, but disclosed no specifics about the magnitude or direction of the changes. Researchers and fund managers relying on this data for analysis, models or charts may need to backfill their historical records without knowing what shifted.

  • Coin Metrics corrected Bitcoin ETF data spanning February 7, 2025 through September 17, 2026, affecting 35 daily series and 25 hourly series.
  • The affected metrics include ETF deposits, withdrawals, transfer counts, transactions, net flows and supply measures tracked via identified wallet addresses.
  • The company disclosed no before-and-after values, aggregate differences, percentage changes or explanation of the cause, leaving the scope of revisions opaque.
  • 19 months of Bitcoin ETF wallet data corrected by Coin Metrics in single revision
  • 60 series affected across daily and hourly frequency observations

Coin Metrics issued a status notice on September 22 stating that it had corrected a substantial body of Bitcoin ETF-related on-chain data, according to CryptoSlate. The revision spans more than 19 months of historical records, but the data provider has not explained what triggered the recalculation or quantified the size of the adjustments. Anyone using those daily or hourly values in research, models or charts covering the corrected interval faces the need to backfill the history and rerun that work.

The Scope of the Correction Remains Undisclosed

The notice lists 35 affected daily series and 25 hourly series, spanning a range of ETF-related metrics.

The daily data includes ETF deposits and withdrawals, transfer counts and transaction volumes, as well as net-flow and supply measures. All of these figures derive from blockchain activity on addresses Coin Metrics has identified as ETF-owned, rather than from official ETF share-creation and redemption records or fund-accounting documentation maintained by issuers. The company did not disclose whether the revisions generally raised or lowered the figures, identify the largest adjustment, or specify the aggregate percentage change across the series.

The absence of before-and-after deltas means researchers cannot quickly assess whether their prior conclusions remain valid or require substantial reconsideration. Coin Metrics has published a status page detailing the correction but has not provided the underlying rationale or magnitude.

How ETF Wallet Data Differs From Official Fund Records

Coin Metrics’ deposit methodology defines an ETF deposit as assets sent during an interval to an address the company identifies as ETF-owned, with dollar-denominated flows calculated using its PriceUSD metric. The withdrawal methodology counts assets leaving identified ETF addresses, but excludes change outputs for Bitcoin so that coins returned to the same fund cluster are not counted as separate inflows. Coverage constraints also apply: the transaction-count metric includes only ETFs and addresses Coin Metrics has identified, making that figure a minimum potential value rather than a comprehensive total.

Wallet movements cannot serve as a one-to-one proxy for authorized-participant creations or redemptions under SEC rules. Coin Metrics measures attributed blockchain activity, while the regulated fund process concerns orders for ETF shares. In July 2025, the SEC approved in-kind creation and redemption mechanisms for crypto ETPs, permitting authorized participants to deposit and withdraw native assets rather than only cash. That structural change in how Bitcoin and ether ETPs can be created and redeemed introduces additional complexity to translating on-chain address activity into official fund flows.

In-Kind Redemptions Now Permitted Under SEC Rules

The SEC voted in July 2025 to permit in-kind creations and redemptions for Bitcoin and ether ETPs, departing from earlier approvals that limited such operations to cash-only basis.

In a statement accompanying the approval, SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins noted that the decision reflected a priority of developing “a fit-for-purpose regulatory framework for crypto asset markets.” Jamie Selway, Director of the Division of Trading and Markets, stated that in-kind creation and redemption provide “flexibility and cost savings to ETP issuers, authorized participants, and investors, resulting in a more efficient market.” The SEC also approved options on certain spot Bitcoin ETPs and increased position limits for listed options on Bitcoin ETPs to match generic commodity-option limits of up to 250,000 contracts.

The practical implications of in-kind redemptions had not previously been tested at scale in the Bitcoin ETP market. A researcher comparing pre-July 2025 wallet behavior to post-July behavior must now account for a structural change in how fund flows are executed. Coin Metrics’ correction may reflect adjustments to its methodology in response to that change, but the company has not said so explicitly.

The BlockWest read. The correction matters to institutional investors and allocators who use Coin Metrics data to monitor fund flows and detect shifts in demand. A 19-month data revision without disclosed magnitude or cause undermines confidence in the reliability of historical analysis, particularly for research published or decisions made before September 22 using the now-invalid figures. Until Coin Metrics publishes deltas or fuller explanation, fund managers cannot distinguish between minor adjustments and material reversals.

Coin Metrics has not committed a timeline for publishing before-and-after values, a detailed explanation of the correction’s cause, or aggregate impact figures. Researchers and institutions relying on the affected series should review Coin Metrics’ status page and consult its documentation on ETF deposits and withdrawals to assess which of their analyses require backfilling.

Binance ETH withdrawals hit 90,000 monthly, highest in three years

Binance ETH withdrawals hit 90,000 monthly, highest in three years

, , , , , , , ,

Ethereum investors are pulling ETH off Binance at the fastest pace in three years, a signal analysts read as quiet accumulation even as the asset trades above $2,700. The withdrawal trend arrives alongside a rough week for US spot Ethereum ETFs, which saw hundreds of millions in outflows despite ETH’s price strength.

  • ETH rose 6% in 24 hours to trade above $2,700, up 80% from $1,510 three months earlier
  • Binance’s monthly average ETH withdrawal transactions topped 90,000, the highest level in three years
  • US spot Ethereum ETFs lost $141.4 million, $224.1 million and $39.2 million over three midweek sessions
  • $2,700+ ETH price on Monday after a 6% daily gain
  • 90,000 monthly average Binance ETH withdrawals, highest in three years
  • 80% ETH’s rally from its $1,510 low three months ago
  • $224.1M single-day ETF outflow during a week of heavy midweek selling

Ethereum climbed steadily on Monday, gaining 6% over the prior 24 hours to trade above $2,700, according to reporting by CryptoPotato. The move extends a rally that has taken ETH up 80% from $1,510 just three months ago, a stretch that has also shifted its technical structure relative to Bitcoin.

Binance Withdrawals Cross 90,000 a Month, Highest Since 2023

Blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant found that the monthly average of ETH withdrawal transactions from Binance has crossed 90,000, the highest level recorded in three years, according to its quicktake analysis. That figure is roughly double the withdrawal pace seen at the start of the year.

CryptoQuant described the shift as “fairly sudden” and significant enough to change the asset’s near-term market structure. Rising withdrawals typically indicate investors are moving coins off exchanges into private wallets or custody solutions, a pattern associated with longer-term holding rather than near-term selling.

CryptoQuant’s data also puts Ethereum’s current accumulation pace ahead of Bitcoin’s. ETH has moved above its April high, showing stronger momentum, while Bitcoin has struggled to hold firmly above its own May high. If the withdrawal trend persists, CryptoQuant noted it could remain an important signal for ETH’s direction in the months ahead.

Crypto Patel Flags $2,300 as the Level That Keeps the Bull Case Alive

Independent analyst Crypto Patel said in a post on X that Ethereum’s higher-timeframe structure has flipped bullish, pointing to a clear change of character on the chart following strong buying from the $2,300 demand zone. ETH has since reclaimed the $2,483 to $2,584 fair value gap, a zone Patel called important for the next price reaction.

Patel identified the next upside target between $2,715 and $2,900, where added liquidity could draw in buyers. A larger resistance band sits between $3,070 and $3,404.

The $2,300 level remains a crucial structural support, while $1,647 to $1,744 could become relevant if the current structure breaks down. Patel added that the bullish setup remains valid as long as ETH holds $2,360.

ETF Outflows Pull August Inflows Below $190 Million

US-listed spot Ethereum ETFs had a difficult stretch even as spot prices climbed. The funds lost $141.4 million on Tuesday, followed by $224.1 million on Wednesday and $39.2 million on Thursday, a run of midweek selling that outweighed inflows of $121 million on Monday and $143.8 million on Friday.

The net effect has pulled August’s cumulative ETF inflows below $190 million. That gap between rising spot demand and retreating ETF flows leaves open which signal, exchange withdrawals or fund flows, proves the better guide to where institutional positioning is headed next.

The BlockWest read. The split between falling exchange balances and shrinking ETF inflows suggests two different investor bases are moving in opposite directions. Wallet-level holders appear to be accumulating directly, while ETF allocators, often the more institutional cohort, pulled back midweek despite the rally. Watch whether ETF flows re-couple with spot price strength or whether direct custody keeps outpacing regulated fund vehicles as the preferred exposure route.

The next test for Patel’s bullish framework is whether ETH can hold the $2,360 level while pushing toward the $2,715 to $2,900 target zone, with CryptoQuant’s withdrawal data due for its next monthly update to confirm whether Binance outflows keep accelerating.

Bitcoin breaks $82,000 resistance after $750 million in short liquidations

Bitcoin breaks $82,000 resistance after $750 million in short liquidations

, , , , , , ,

Bitcoin climbed to a fresh eight-month high of $86,000 on Monday after clearing the $82,000 ceiling that had capped prices since August, triggering roughly $750 million in short liquidations. Traders are now watching whether spot demand and ETF inflows can keep pace with a wave of fresh leverage entering the market.

  • Bitcoin hit an eight-month high of $86,000 after breaking through resistance at $82,000 that had held since August.
  • Roughly $750 million in bearish crypto derivative positions were liquidated as bitcoin cleared $82,000, according to CoinGlass data.
  • Futures open interest rose about $2 billion since the breakout even as short positions were wiped out, Coinalyze data shows.
  • $86,000 bitcoin’s fresh eight-month high price on Monday
  • $750M bearish derivative positions liquidated as BTC cleared $82,000
  • $2B new leveraged futures exposure added since the breakout
  • $82,225 average ETF buyer cost basis, first profit level in months

Bitcoin’s move through $82,000 on Monday extended a rally that has forced bearish traders to close short positions while pulling fresh leveraged money back into the market, according to CoinDesk reported. The $82,000 level had stopped bitcoin once before, in May, when an earlier attempt to break through failed and the price later slid below $60,000 in June.

Short Liquidations Fuel Breakout Past $82,000

When short positions are liquidated, exchanges execute buy orders to close them out, which adds momentum to an already rising market. That dynamic played out Monday as roughly $750 million in bearish crypto derivative positions were wiped out once bitcoin cleared $82,000, according to CoinGlass data.

Jim Ferraioli, Schwab’s head of crypto research, attributed the move directly to that mechanism.

“Bitcoin up 5% this morning due to short perpetual futures contracts being liquidated,” Ferraioli told CoinDesk.

Open interest, the total value of outstanding derivatives bets, climbed even faster than bitcoin’s spot price. About $2 billion in new leveraged exposure has been added since the breakout, according to Coinalyze data, showing traders are layering on fresh bets even as the prior wave of shorts gets cleared out.

Nansen’s Sondergaard Flags Gap Between Price And Positioning

Nicolai Sondergaard, senior research analyst at Nansen, said crypto-native positioning has been slower to turn bullish than the price action itself.

“The important distinction is that price has turned bullish faster than positioning has.”

Nicolai Sondergaard, senior research analyst, Nansen

U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw a combined $746 million of outflows on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, as a Clarity Act cloture vote failed in the Senate and the Federal Reserve raised interest rates, according to Farside Investors data. Flows then reversed sharply, pulling in $160 million on Thursday and $433 million on Friday, the strongest single-day inflow of the week.

Monday’s rally also pushed the average cost basis for U.S. bitcoin ETF buyers to $82,225. That marks the first time in a while that ETF investors as a group are sitting on unrealized gains.

Wintermute’s De Maere Eyes $90,000 Test And Friday’s Options Expiry

Sondergaard pointed to $87,000 as the next level to watch, followed by the psychological $90,000 mark and then roughly $92,000. Jasper De Maere, OTC trader at Wintermute, also sees a test of $90,000 as plausible, and noted that bitcoin reclaiming its 50-week moving average, a trend line that acted as resistance in prior bear markets, adds to the bullish case.

“We, like many others, would read this reclaim as confirmation that the June low holds.”

Jasper De Maere, OTC Trader, Wintermute

Chris Sullivan, co-portfolio manager at Hyperion Decimus, called the move the start of a new bullish cycle but warned of a coming pullback. “This should be the first primary wave/rally of the new bull market,” he said, adding “we’re going to see a large correction once this rally exhausts itself.” De Maere separately dismissed social-media talk of a fresh all-time high above bitcoin’s $126,000 October 2025 peak before year-end as “premature at the moment.”

The risk of a leverage-driven reversal is not hypothetical. On October 10, bitcoin tumbled from near-record prices and triggered roughly $19 billion in liquidations, the market’s largest such cascade on record.

Ferraioli noted altcoins have started rallying alongside bitcoin, a sign risk appetite is broadening, though he said the real test is whether activity on smaller blockchains actually increases rather than prices simply snapping back after being oversold. De Maere said he is watching three things in the days ahead: ETF flows, signs of excess in perpetual futures through inflated open interest or funding rates, and Friday’s options expiry. “So far this rally is looking pretty healthy,” he said.

The BlockWest read. The gap Sondergaard describes between price and positioning matters more for allocators than the $90,000 target itself. Institutional desks that stayed short into the breakout now face a choice: chase the move with fresh leverage, as open interest data suggests some already have, or wait for spot and ETF flows to confirm demand. Monday’s ETF flow figures, due later, will tell allocators which camp is winning.

Traders are now watching Monday’s ETF flow data, due later, along with funding rates and open interest for signs of excess leverage, and Friday’s options expiry as the next checkpoints for whether the rally toward $90,000 holds.

EMXETF Launches China AI ETF, Providing Targeted Exposure to Companies Building China’s AI Ecosystem

EMXETF Launches China AI ETF, Providing Targeted Exposure to Companies Building China’s AI Ecosystem

, , ,

Press Release September 16, 2026 Source: EMXETF

EMXETF Launches China AI ETF, Providing Targeted Exposure to Companies Building China’s AI Ecosystem

Actively managed ETF offers investors focused access to China’s rapidly developing artificial intelligence technology stack, from semiconductors and memory to AI models, robotics, and applications

FundChina AI ETF
TickerNASDAQ: AICH
IssuerEMXETF, by EMQQ Global

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 16, 2026 — As artificial intelligence continues to transform industries and economies around the world, China is rapidly developing one of the largest and most comprehensive AI ecosystems outside the United States.

EMXETF, an ETF brand by EMQQ Global focused on AI opportunities across emerging markets, today announced the launch of the China AI ETF (NASDAQ: AICH), an actively managed ETF designed to provide focused exposure to companies shaping China’s rapidly evolving AI landscape.

While much of the global investment attention around AI has centered on U.S. technology companies, China has been building a broad domestic ecosystem spanning semiconductors, GPUs, memory, optical networking, AI models, robotics, applications and the infrastructure needed to support them.

“We believe investors are increasingly looking for ways to diversify their AI exposure beyond the largest U.S. technology companies. China represents a significant and rapidly evolving AI market, with companies operating across virtually every layer of the ecosystem. AICH provides a focused way to participate in that growth.”

Kevin T. Carter, Founder + CIO of EMQQ Global and EMXETF

The emergence of Chinese AI models such as DeepSeek, Z.ai and MiniMax has brought increased global attention to the depth and pace of innovation taking place across the country’s technology sector. The China AI Tigers LLM ETF (NASDAQ: TGRZ) was launched to capture the model layer. AICH seeks to provide investors with exposure to this broader development rather than concentrating solely on the better-known Chinese technology companies.

AICH is designed to give investors more direct access to these emerging companies and the technologies they are developing, from the infrastructure powering AI systems to the models, machines, and applications being built on top of them.

China’s investment in artificial intelligence is driving development across virtually every layer of the technology stack. Many companies contributing to this growth have historically had limited representation in broad global technology and China-focused ETFs.

As AI adoption continues to expand globally, AICH offers investors a differentiated way to access the companies helping shape China’s next generation of technology, from the chips and infrastructure underneath AI to the models, robotics and applications bringing it to life.

The fund is part of the EMXETF family of ETFs focused on targeted artificial intelligence opportunities in Emerging Markets.

About EMXETF

EMXETF was created to develop exchange-traded funds focused on artificial intelligence opportunities in Emerging Markets. EMXETF seeks to provide investors with targeted exposure to companies participating in the next generation of Emerging Markets innovation. EMXETF is a division of EMQQ Global, a San Francisco based investment manager focused on Emerging Markets Technology opportunities.

Media ContactChris Sullivan
Craft & Capital
chris@craftandcapital.com

Important Information

For the Fund’s current holdings, visit www.emxetf.com/AICH.

Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. For a prospectus or summary prospectus with this and other information about the Fund, please call (833) 333-9383 or visit emxetf.com. Read the prospectus or summary prospectus carefully before investing.

Investing involves risk. Loss of principal is possible.

Equity Market Risk. Common stocks are generally exposed to greater risk than other types of securities, such as preferred stock and debt obligations, because common stockholders generally have inferior rights to receive payment from specific issuers. The equity securities held in the Fund’s portfolio may experience sudden, unpredictable drops in value or long periods of decline in value.

Artificial Intelligence Risk. Issuers engaged in artificial intelligence typically have high research and capital expenditures and, as a result, their profitability can vary widely, if they are profitable at all. The space in which they are engaged is highly competitive and issuers’ products and services may become obsolete very quickly. These companies are heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights. The issuers are also subject to legal, regulatory and political changes that may have a large impact on their profitability.

Foreign Securities Risk. Investments in non-U.S. securities involve risks that may not be present with investments in U.S. securities. For example, investments in non-U.S. securities may be subject to risk of loss due to foreign currency fluctuations or to political or economic instability. There may be less information publicly available about a non-U.S. issuer than a U.S. issuer. Non-U.S. issuers may be subject to different accounting, auditing, financial reporting and investor protection standards than U.S. issuers. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of foreign issuers may also adversely affect the value of the Fund’s securities.

China Investing Risks. The Chinese economy is generally considered an emerging market and can be significantly affected by economic and political conditions and policy in China and surrounding Asian countries. A relatively small number of Chinese companies represent a large portion of China’s total market and thus may be more sensitive to adverse political or economic circumstances and market movements. The economy of China differs, often unfavorably, from the U.S. economy in such respects as structure, general development, government involvement, wealth distribution, rate of inflation, growth rate, allocation of resources and capital reinvestment, among others.

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives are financial instruments that derive value from the underlying reference asset or assets, such as stocks, bonds, or funds (including ETFs), interest rates or indexes. The Fund’s investments in derivatives may pose risks in addition to, and greater than, those associated with directly investing in securities or other ordinary investments, including risk related to the market, imperfect correlation with underlying investments or the Fund’s other portfolio holdings, higher price volatility, lack of availability, counterparty risk, liquidity, valuation and legal restrictions.

Swap Agreements. The use of swap transactions is a highly specialized activity, which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. Whether the Fund will be successful in using swap agreements to achieve its investment goal depends on the ability of the Adviser to structure such swap agreements in accordance with the Fund’s investment objective and to identify counterparties for those swap agreements.

Counterparty Risk. The Fund is subject to counterparty risk by virtue of its investments in derivatives which exposes the Fund to the risk that the counterparty will not fulfill its obligation to the Fund.

Geographic Investment Risk. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in the securities of companies of a single country or region, it is more likely to be impacted by events or conditions affecting that country or region.

New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions.

Non-Diversification Risk. Because the Fund is “non-diversified,” it may invest a greater percentage of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a smaller number of issuers than if it was a diversified fund. As a result, a decline in the value of an investment in a single issuer or a smaller number of issuers could cause the Fund’s overall value to decline to a greater degree than if the Fund held a more diversified portfolio.

Distributed by Foreside Fund Services, LLC.

This is a paid press release issued by EMXETF and published as provided. BlockWest did not write it and it is not investment advice. Originally distributed via GlobeNewswire.

Load More

Back To Top
© BlockWest 2026
BlockWest Media LLC

Equities, AI, and blue-chip crypto, covered as one connected market.

Sections

Company

Legal

Follow

𝕏 ▶ in

© 2026 BlockWest. All rights reserved.