Bitcoin ETFs see biggest weekly inflow in 10 months during rally

Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds had their strongest weekly inflow in 10 months last week as the original cryptocurrency surged.

The 13 US-listed funds drew in a net $1.92 billion, the most since early October last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The inflow came as Bitcoin gained about 23% last week, its biggest weekly increase in more than three years. It was trading around $77,000 at noon Monday in Singapore.

Bitcoin’s spectacular rally was initially propelled by US plans to increase buybacks of long-dated bonds to lower yields, and accentuated by a short squeeze as traders were forced to close bearish bets. The jump in ETF inflows indicates broader investor demand for the token.

“We saw net inflows on every trading day last week, which suggests renewed investor interest in Bitcoin,” said Gracie Lin, chief executive officer of crypto exchange OKX SG. “The question now is whether that momentum will hold. After such a strong move in Bitcoin, some profit-taking wouldn’t be surprising.”

The latest weekly ETF inflows were the largest since Bitcoin crashed from a record above $126,000, reached on Oct. 6, and entered a so-called “crypto winter.” The resurgence is notable because spot ETFs had suffered nearly $390 million of net outflows the previous week, the most in six weeks.

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust accounted for $1.3 billion of last week’s inflows.

Even after those gains, some $2.9 billion has been drained from the ETFs this year. It remains to be seen whether Bitcoin’s rally will translate into sustained demand and a new bull market.

“Near term, the market looks stretched but still well supported,” said Jayke Kyndrede, senior sales trader at market maker QCP Group. “After such a rapid move, some consolidation or retracement would be unsurprising, but the timing and depth are difficult to call while demand remains strong.”