Last updated on January 3rd, 2026 at 11:35 am
Quick Breakdown
- Bitcoin and Ether ETFs have seen sustained outflows since November, pointing to cooling institutional engagement.
- Crypto funds recorded nearly $1 billion in outflows last week, extending a broader liquidity contraction.
- BlackRock’s IBIT remains dominant, outperforming rival Bitcoin ETFs and even gold in net inflows despite weak returns.
Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds in the United States are experiencing a sustained period of capital outflows, signaling a slowdown in institutional participation across the crypto market, according to onchain analytics firm Glassnode.
Since early November, the 30D-SMA of net flows into both Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs has turned negative and remained so.
This persistence suggests a phase of muted participation and partial disengagement from institutional allocators, reinforcing the broader liquidity contraction… pic.twitter.com/1aglRpQqD9— glassnode (@glassnode) December 23, 2025
Glassnode said Tuesday that the 30-day simple moving average of net flows into US spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs has remained negative since early November, pointing to what it described as “partial disengagement” from institutional investors.
Institutional participation shows signs of retreat
ETF flows are widely viewed as a proxy for institutional sentiment, and their prolonged decline suggests large allocators are becoming more cautious as market conditions tighten.
“This persistence suggests a phase of muted participation and partial disengagement from institutional allocators,”
Glassnode said, adding that the slowdown reinforces a broader contraction in crypto market liquidity.
Historically, flows into crypto ETFs tend to lag spot market performance, which has been under pressure for weeks.
Selling pressure returns despite BlackRock resilience
Data from Coinglass shows aggregate Bitcoin ETF flows have remained negative for four consecutive trading days. Market newsletter The Kobeissi Letter echoed the sentiment, saying “crypto ETF selling pressure is back.”
According to the report, crypto investment funds recorded $952 million in outflows last week alone, with investors pulling capital from crypto funds in six of the past ten weeks.
Still, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has stood out as a relative exception, posting modest inflows over the past week despite broader market weakness.
IBIT outperforms peers and even gold on flows
Despite the recent pullback, BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF remains the industry leader by a wide margin. Since launch, IBIT has attracted $62.5 billion in inflows, far surpassing all competing spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted that IBIT is currently the only fund on Bloomberg’s 2025 ETF Flow Leaderboard posting a negative return for the year, yet it still ranks sixth overall by inflows.
He added that IBIT even attracted more capital than the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) ETF, which is up 64% this year, a signal of strong long-term investor conviction.
“If you can do $25 billion in a bad year, imagine the flow potential in a good year,”
Balchunas said.
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