The recent run of inflows into U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) halted as BTC dipped below $71,000 on Thursday, triggering net outflows across the sector.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced $228 million in net outflows on Thursday, ending a three-day inflow streak of roughly $1.1 billion, according to SoSoValue. Weekly inflows remained at $917.3 million heading into Friday’s session, while year-to-date net outflows rose to about $900 million. Cumulative inflows for 2026 stand at $3.58 billion, with cumulative outflows totaling $4.49 billion. Total assets under management stayed above $90 billion after reclaiming that threshold earlier in the week.
Data from Farside showed BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) led the day’s outflows with $89 million, followed by Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) at $48 million and Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) at $46 million.
Analysts cautioned that Bitcoin’s recent strength may be a relief rally rather than the start of a new bull market. CryptoQuant noted that the move above $73,000 looked like a relief rally, aligning with forecasts that BTC could fall below $60,000 amid the ongoing crypto winter.
Altcoin ETFs also felt selling pressure. Ether funds posted $91 million in outflows, while XRP and Solana saw smaller outflows of $6 million and $5 million, respectively. Solana ETF outflows marked the first losses since early February, though year-to-date inflows for Solana ETFs have totaled about $200 million. XRP has recorded roughly $86 million in inflows so far this year.
Despite a 57% decline in SOL’s price since the launch of spot Solana ETFs in July, Solana products have amassed $1.5 billion in cumulative inflows, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted on X. He added that many institutions boosted exposure to Solana in Q4 2025 and highlighted that accumulating $1.5 billion without surrendering much of it are positive signs for the future.
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