On March 4, spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) based in the United States experienced a significant increase in net inflows, amounting to $562 million. This surge coincided with Bitcoin’s price surpassing $68,000 and inching closer to its all-time high of approximately $69,000. This marked the third-largest day of inflows since spot Bitcoin ETFs began trading on January 11.
Interestingly, despite the outflows from smaller players and the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), spot Bitcoin ETFs still saw substantial inflows. GBTC alone experienced outflows of $368 million on that day. The two funds that recorded the largest inflows were BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, with $420 million, and Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust, with $404 million. In fact, the net inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs on March 4 were ten times the amount of new BTC added to the supply through mining activities.
The trading volume of spot Bitcoin ETFs reached its peak on March 4, totaling $5.5 billion. This was the second-highest volume day since the products were launched. The combination of high trading volume and institutional demand means that spot Bitcoin ETFs, exchange-traded products, and trackers now handle approximately 1 million BTC, which accounts for about 5.13% of the total BTC circulating supply.
Since their launch two months ago, spot Bitcoin ETFs have witnessed net inflows of $7.5 billion worth of BTC, despite experiencing over $9 billion in outflows. BlackRock’s IBIT has already surpassed $10 billion in assets under management. In comparison, it took gold ETFs nearly two years to reach that milestone.
Looking ahead, Bitcoin ETFs may experience increased demand in the coming days, as BlackRock has filed to purchase BTC for its Strategic Income Opportunities Fund. Additionally, with the Bitcoin halving scheduled for next month, the daily supply of new BTC will be cut in half. This reduction, coupled with the current market demand already exceeding new supply by 10 times, could potentially act as a catalyst for further increases in the BTC price.