On Monday, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF emerged as the only spot Bitcoin fund in the United States to witness inflows. Meanwhile, other ETFs either saw no new funds coming in or even experienced outflows. According to Farside Investors’ data, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) noted net inflows of $73.4 million on April 15, although this figure was lower than the $111.1 million observed the day before. Conversely, the remaining eight ETFs, except for Grayscale’s, reported no inflows during this timeframe.
GBTC Sees $110M in Outflows
Despite the inflows into IBIT, it couldn’t outpace the outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which saw $110.1 million in outflows on April 15, a slowdown from the $166.2 million outflows on April 14.
Between April 12 and 15, all ten spot Bitcoin ETFs together experienced net outflows, totaling $55.1 million and $36.7 million, respectively.
These recent outflows from U.S. Bitcoin ETFs align with a volatile period for Bitcoin, which has undergone an 11.6% decline over the week, trading at around $63,410.
Moreover, James Butterfill, the head of research at CoinShares, highlighted that global Bitcoin investment products encountered outflows of $110 million in the week ending April 12, reflecting investor caution. He pointed out that all combined crypto investment products saw net outflows of $126 million last week, despite an increase in weekly volumes from $17 billion to $21 billion.
Bitcoin’s recent drop to a three-week low of $61,918 is attributed to Iran’s retaliatory strike on Israel on April 13, causing market volatility. Additionally, with the cryptocurrency’s halving event approaching on April 20, where its issuance will be halved, traders are closely monitoring its potential impact on Bitcoin’s price trajectory.
Bitcoin Surges as Hong Kong Approves Spot ETFs
Bitcoin saw a 2.8% surge over a 24-hour period on Monday, reaching a trading value above $66,500, following announcements from multiple issuers in Hong Kong regarding the approval of spot crypto ETFs.
China Asset Management, Bosera Capital, and other applicants utilized the social media platform WeChat (Weixin) to spread news of their approval to list spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs in Hong Kong. This development holds significance as analysts anticipate potential investment from mainland Chinese investors, estimating up to $25 billion flowing into Hong Kong-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs through the Southbound Stock Connect program.
The Southbound Stock Connect facilitates qualified mainland Chinese investors’ access to eligible shares listed in Hong Kong.
Additionally, there’s speculation about a significant outflow of Bitcoin from miners in the months following the upcoming halving event.
Markus Thielen, the head of research at 10x Research, suggested in a recent note that Bitcoin miners might be inclined to liquidate around $5 billion worth of BTC post-halving. He pointed out that this selling pressure from miners could persist for four to six months, potentially resulting in sideways movement in Bitcoin’s price during that period, akin to patterns observed in previous halving cycles.
