Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
Institutional players have been active in the past week amid the Bitcoin (BTC) price increase. The Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) market witnessed massive inflows, with all asset managers raking in cash as interest spiked. BlackRock’s IBIT led the inflow, emerging as the leading asset manager.
Institutional investors drive historic Bitcoin ETF surge
According to insights from senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg Eric Balchunas, BlackRock’s IBIT led with $3.5 billion in weekly flows. This represents 10% of all the net flows into the ETF market as it attracted more investment funds than any other ETF over the past week.
The Bitcoin ETF also beat traditional Wall Street rivals, including the SPDR Portfolio, S&P 500 ETF and Vanguard S&P 500 ETF.
Interestingly, other asset managers like Fidelity, Ark Invest, VanEck and Bitwise all had more money flowing in than going out. This suggests that the week recorded massive interest from institutional investors in the flagship crypto asset.
Grayscale’s GBTC, which has become notorious for suffering heavy outflows due to its high fees, also recorded consistent inflows. Between Sept. 29 and Oct. 3, GBTC did not register any outflows. The worst that occurred was zero flow on Sept. 30.
Grayscale recorded its highest inflow on the first day of the week with $26.9 million. The other days were $9.2 million, $2.8 million and $18.3 million, in that order.
Ironically, based on Farside Investors data, BlackRock’s IBIT was the only asset manager within the week that recorded a net outflow of $46.6 million at the start of the week. However, in subsequent days, the fund shook off the bearish outlook and recorded inflows in an incremental pattern.
The least inflow was $199.4 million on the second day of trading, while it closed the week on a high of $791.6million. The other two days were $405.5 million and $466.5 million, respectively.
Analyst sounds caution as Bitcoin market maintains momentum
Eric Balchunas suggests that the market is in a bullish phase as investors increase their demand for Bitcoin exposure. "Two steps forward mode. Enjoy while it lasts," he stated.
The analyst is sounding caution despite the uptrend on the ETF market. He is implying that this surge in ETF inflows and market enthusiasm might not persist for long. However, as long as the uptrend continues, investors need to maximize the opportunity.
As of press time, Bitcoin, on the broader crypto market, has slipped by 0.24% and exchanged hands at $122,363.18 in the last 24 hours. Despite a slight drop, trading volume remains up by 11.39% at $76.47 billion.
Dan Burgin
Vladislav Sopov
U.Today Editorial Team