Bitcoin ETF outflows reach $1.26 billion in worst week since January

US spot bitcoin ETFs logged $1.26 billion of net outflows this week, their worst weekly showing since late January, as bitcoin (BTC) traded at $75,385.81 on Friday and one of the market’s clearest institutional demand gauges kept deteriorating. The Block reported. The funds are now on pace for $2.26 billion of net redemptions over two weeks, while bitcoin briefly slid to $74,300 in a broader crypto selloff that CoinDesk said reflected deeper market stress.

For much of the past year, US-listed spot ETFs were a simple read on institutional appetite for bitcoin. Inflows meant fresh demand from advisers, wealth platforms and other buyers who preferred listed funds to direct token custody. This week the pattern reversed. Redemptions added pressure to an asset that offers no yield just as Treasury yields climbed, the dollar strengthened and geopolitical tension pushed more investors toward cash.

BlackRock’s IBIT, still the largest US spot bitcoin fund, held $61.1 billion in net assets against $64.8 billion in cumulative inflows on Friday, according to The Block. That left a gap of roughly $3.7 billion, showing how much of the earlier buying wave has been eroded by recent withdrawals. Fidelity’s FBTC was also part of the weekly outflow picture. The larger point is that the ETF complex is no longer delivering the steady institutional bid that many crypto bulls had come to count on.

The six-day streak in bitcoin ETF withdrawals reached $1.55 billion, according to the flow data cited in the article brief. That matters because these funds sit inside brokerage accounts and wealth platforms. When money leaves them for nearly a week, it signals a broader pullback than a single crypto-native trading desk cutting leverage.

Andri Fauzan Adziima, research lead at Bitrue Research Institute, told The Block that “key culprits [are] surging Treasury yields hitting 12-month highs, a stronger dollar, and geopolitical escalation.”

Macro pressure builds

The setup resembles earlier risk-off periods. Reuters reported in February that bitcoin’s slump then came with a wider $2 trillion drop in crypto market value as traders dealt with tighter financial conditions and weaker appetite for risk. Higher long-dated yields raise the opportunity cost of holding bitcoin because the token does not generate income. A stronger dollar can also tighten funding conditions and make speculative positions harder to finance.

Reuters reported in March 2024 that institutional allocations and ETF demand had helped drive bitcoin higher by giving advisers and wealth managers a listed route into the asset class. This week’s numbers show the same structure can work in reverse when those buyers step back.

Ether outflows widen the signal

US spot ether (ETH) ETFs recorded $216 million of net outflows this week and extended their losing streak to 10 consecutive sessions, The Block said. Parallel outflows in bitcoin and ether funds point to a wider reduction in crypto exposure rather than a simple rotation within the sector.

That strips away one of the cleaner bullish arguments for bitcoin. If ether funds are also losing money, portfolio managers appear to be cutting risk at the wrapper level instead of shifting between tokens. ETF flows do not decide where bitcoin trades next week, but they remain one of the clearest signals of whether conventional capital is adding exposure or pulling it back. For now, that signal remains negative.