In brief
- Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs recorded their largest daily net outflows for two weeks Monday.
- Bitcoin ETFs are down about $225 million net in December after a $357.6 million peak daily outflow, while Ethereum ETFs are near flat overall despite a $224 million single-day redemption.
- The pullback could be linked to macro de-risking rather than crypto-specific stress, Decrypt was told.
Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs saw their largest daily net outflows in roughly two weeks, shedding a combined $582.4 million Monday as institutional investors pared exposure amid renewed volatility in U.S. equities and uncertainty over the direction of global monetary policy.
Net daily outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs reached $357.6 million at their peak on Monday, the largest single-day redemption since early December, per data from Farside Investors. Selling was spread across Fidelity’s FBTC, Ark’s ARKB, and Bitwise’s BITB, while BlackRock’s IBIT was flat on the day.
Ethereum spot ETFs likewise saw outflows of almost $225 million on Monday, the largest single-day redemption since the start of the month.
The pullback came even as crypto prices held within recent ranges, reinforcing that ETF flows, rather than spot moves, are capturing how allocators are repositioning crypto alongside other risk assets.
“Bitcoin is increasingly acting like a Nasdaq derivative in the fourth quarter: when the tech sector corrects, BTC weakens more aggressively,” Farzam Ehsani, CEO of crypto trading platform VALR, told Decrypt.
Ehsani said that dynamic has pushed ETF redemptions to track broader equity de-risking rather than crypto-specific stress, as institutional investors use spot ETFs as the most efficient channel to adjust exposure when U.S. technology stocks sell off.
Over six months, Bitcoin has declined while major U.S. indices have remained steady, he noted, adding that November was “the worst month of the year” for the asset, with December “currently resembling a prolonged sideways trend: there are attempts at growth, but sustained demand is lacking.”
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF activity has skewed negative so far this month, with roughly $705 million in outflows versus about $480 million in inflows, leaving the market with a net drawdown of around $225 million despite several sizable inflow days, according to CoinGlass data tracking December’s flows to date.
Ethereum spot ETFs, meanwhile, showed a more balanced pattern over the same period, with roughly $411 million in inflows offset by about $403 million in outflows, leaving the segment near flat overall.
Risks and conditions
“The risk landscape has become more complex following the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision on December 10,” Ehsani said, noting that the central bank cut rates while signaling that the easing cycle may pause. “The problem is that inflation isn’t slowing fast enough, and there’s a lack of unity within the FOMC,” he added, pointing to opposition from within the Fed’s ranks.
That uncertainty has been compounded by tighter financial conditions and pressure on U.S. risk assets, Ehsani argued.
“Against this backdrop, the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes rose to 4.2%, the highest since early September,” he said, adding that technology stocks have sold off as fears of overheating in the AI trade returned.
In that environment, crypto markets appear to have struggled to attract sustained participation, even as prices have avoided a decisive breakdown.
“Despite market jitters and heightened short-term volatility, the long-term outlook for Bitcoin remains cautiously optimistic,” Ehsani said. “Global liquidity is expanding thanks to the Fed’s ‘quasi-quantitative easing’ and accommodative financial conditions, pressure from long-term holders—a key source of selling in 2025—has nearly exhausted.”
Looking ahead, Ehsani noted that the “institutional foundation remains strong thanks to maintained ETF positions,” with those fundamentals potentially forming “the basis for a gradual recovery in demand and an exit from BTC’s current flat market.”
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