Since their introduction, spot bitcoin ETFs (exchange-traded funds) have gained popularity as they provide investors with a straightforward way to access BTC without directly owning or managing the largest cryptoasset by market valuation. The funds have seen massive investment activity from both institutional and retail investors, with total trading volume recently reaching a record high as BTC hits an all-time high above $93,000.
U.S spot bitcoin ETFs surpass $5B in trading volume
The U.S. spot BTC ETFs market has achieved a major milestone, topping an impressive $5 billion in cumulative trading volume or total value traded within their first year of launch.
Launched in January 2024, these ETFs compromises BlackRock Bitcoin ETF (IBIT), Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), Bitwise Bitcoin ETF, Valkyrie Bitcoin ETF, VanEck Bitcoin Trust, WisdomTree Bitcoin Trust, Fidelity Bitcoin ETF, Invesco Bitcoin Trust, ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), ProShares Bitcoin ETF and Galaxy Bitcoin ETF.
According to data on platforms like SoSoValue, which monitors crypto ETFs activity closely, this achievement was recorded on 14 November 2024, following BTC’s rally to an all-time high above $93,000. Of the $5 billion cumulative traded volume, data shows that BlackRock’s IBIT alone has surpassed $3 billion in trading volume year-to-date.
However, at the time of writing, the cumulative trading volume of these BTC ETFs has declined to $4.82 billion, with total net assets sitting at $92.56 billion, per SoSoValue data. This drop in total value traded follows the heavy BTC ETF outflows recorded on Thursday.
Read also: Historic U.S SEC approval paves way for spot Bitcoin ETFs trading.
Bitcoin ETFs record third highest outflow since launch.
Farside data shows that U.S spot BTC ETFs had their third worst day since launching in early January 2024 on Thursday. The other two days were on 4 November 2024 ($541.1 million outflow) and 1 May 2024 ($563.7 million).
Coinciding with a BTC price drop, over $400 billion was pulled out from these ETFs during Thursday trading. Among the spot BTC ETFs which recorded a notable daily outflow on this day included Fidelity’s FBTC, ARK & 21Shares’ ARKB, Grayscale’s GBTC and Bitwise’s BITB. Fidelity’s FBTC saw the highest outflow of approximately $179.16 million, closely followed by ARK 21Shares ARKB with an outflow of $161.72 million. While Bitwise’s BITB recorded a daily net outflow of $113.94 million, Grayscale’s GBTC saw only $69.59 million in outflows.
Meanwhile, BlackRock’s IBIT and VanEcK’s HODL boasted substantial daily net inflows to the tune of $126.53 million and $2.5 million, respectively, on Thursday. At the time of writing, IBIT remains the best-performing BTC ETF, with approximately $3.08 billion in total value traded.
Read also: What is a cryptocurrency ETF?
ETF outflows signal BTC rally to $100,000.
Historically, whenever these ETF products saw outflows of over $400 million within a day, it always signaled a price bottom for BTC as indicated by Glassnode. Notably, when U.S. spot BTC ETFs saw an outflow of $563.7 million, BTC price jumped from around $60,000 to over $70,000 in days before correcting.
Likewise, when these ETFs recorded $541.1 million in daily outflows just before the U.S elections, BTC traded around $67,000. However, the cryptoasset’s price rallied over 25% to reach $93,000 some days later.
Trading below $90,000 at the time of writing, market analysts believe history would repeat itself following the recent $400 million ETF outflows. If that becomes the case, BTC may breach $100,000 before 2025.
Read also: Spot Bitcoin ETFs and the Crypto Market: The Other Side of the Coin
Ndianabasi Tom A crypto journalist and content writer who has been talking about cryptocurrency and blockchain technology since 2018, Ndianabasi is a Writer at Crypto Asset Buyer (CAB).
