A BlackRock exchange-traded fund (ETF) that invests in Bitcoin (BTC) saw record inflows of $520 million on Wednesday, the largest daily inflow for any US ETF across the asset classes so far this year.
All this comes as BTC’s price tests $64,000 and is just one step away from the 2021 all-time high. The market is currently dominated by speculative frenzy, and “greed” is at levels never seen before.
BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has seen steady investor demand, registering 32 consecutive days of inflows. As of Wednesday, the nine Bitcoin spot ETFs saw a combined trading volume of more than $2.6 billion, with IBIT breaking its own record at $1.5 billion.
Source: Bloomberg
The surge in investment in Bitcoin ETFs comes amid a broad rally in cryptocurrency prices. BTC hit a two-year high on Wednesday, close to its all-time record, while other major digital assets such as Ethereum also saw significant gains.
Analysts say the successful launch of the Bitcoin Spot ETF in January 2024 has opened the door to new investments from asset managers, hedge funds and retail traders. The ease of trading BTC through ETFs is helping to push its value higher by increasing demand.
Bitcoin price. Source: CoinMarketCap
“The market is waking up to the fact that bitcoin is now easily accessible to the public and we’re only scratching the surface as far as mainstream adoption,” said Joel Krueger, market strategist at LMAX Group. “We also believe that there has been a lot of excitement around the low correlation with US equities, which makes Bitcoin all the more attractive as an investment for portfolio diversification.”
Clearly, the demand for leverage in the cryptocurrency market is affecting investor behavior. High costs in the futures market and decentralized finance are leading to a growing need for crypto lending.
“Investors are looking for ways to obtain liquidity in a high-rate environment, prompting them to turn to lending platforms that offer borrowing and futures services within an easily navigable interface,” commented Andrey Stoychev, Nexo’s project manager. “Lending demand in familiar settings is not only a reflection of the market’s adaptability to external economic factors but also leads to significant trends in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.”
WisdomTree European BTC ETPs over $500 AuM
Another issuer of exchange-traded instruments, WisdomTree, reported record results. Its European cryptocurrency exchange traded products (ETPs) have crossed the $500 million mark in assets under management. This figure marks a historic peak for WisdomTree’s European crypto ETPs, which experienced a net inflow of $59 million into its portfolio in 2024, driven primarily by WisdomTree Physical Bitcoin.
According to market experts, retail investors have increased investment more than institutional investors. As more financial advisors are approved to offer Bitcoin ETFs to clients, analysts expect volumes to increase over the next year.
“The launch of spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the US has changed the way many investors look cryptocurrencies As an investable asset class,” said Alexis Marinoff, head of European affairs at WisdomTree. “With bitcoin focused on the expected halving in April, investors are seeing more potential in the asset class.”
Greed is everywhere
The price of BTC has more than doubled in the past few months, recently surpassing $64,000. This rapid price increase has led to euphoric sentiment, with the Crypto Fear and Greed Index reaching an all-time high (86) in November 2021 when BTC hit its previous all-time high of $69,000.
Crypto Fear and Greed Index. Source: CoinMarketCap
This index ranges from 0 to 100, with 0 representing “extreme fear” and 100 representing “extreme greed”. A high index level indicates that investors are becoming overly greedy, believing that the value of the cryptocurrency will continue to rise. This often precedes a market correction as prices finally diverge from fundamentals.
Some analysts argue that such high greed indicates that the crypto market is due for a correction, as excessive optimism usually foreshadows a price reversal. Ultimately, while extreme greed suggests that crypto prices have significant room to fall, the persistence of current market optimism makes it challenging to predict the exact timing of a correction.
A BlackRock exchange-traded fund (ETF) that invests in Bitcoin (BTC) saw record inflows of $520 million on Wednesday, the largest daily inflow for any US ETF across the asset classes so far this year.
All this comes as BTC’s price tests $64,000 and is just one step away from the 2021 all-time high. The market is currently dominated by speculative frenzy, and “greed” is at levels never seen before.
BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has seen steady investor demand, registering 32 consecutive days of inflows. As of Wednesday, the nine Bitcoin spot ETFs saw a combined trading volume of more than $2.6 billion, with IBIT breaking its own record at $1.5 billion.
Source: Bloomberg
The surge in investment in Bitcoin ETFs comes amid a broad rally in cryptocurrency prices. BTC hit a two-year high on Wednesday, close to its all-time record, while other major digital assets such as Ethereum also saw significant gains.
Analysts say the successful launch of the Bitcoin Spot ETF in January 2024 has opened the door to new investments from asset managers, hedge funds and retail traders. The ease of trading BTC through ETFs is helping to push its value higher by increasing demand.
Bitcoin price. Source: CoinMarketCap
“The market is waking up to the fact that bitcoin is now easily accessible to the public and we’re only scratching the surface as far as mainstream adoption,” said Joel Krueger, market strategist at LMAX Group. “We also believe that there has been a lot of excitement around the low correlation with US equities, which makes Bitcoin all the more attractive as an investment for portfolio diversification.”
Clearly, the demand for leverage in the cryptocurrency market is affecting investor behavior. High costs in the futures market and decentralized finance are leading to a growing need for crypto lending.
“Investors are looking for ways to obtain liquidity in a high-rate environment, prompting them to turn to lending platforms that offer borrowing and futures services within an easily navigable interface,” commented Andrey Stoychev, Nexo’s project manager. “Lending demand in familiar settings is not only a reflection of the market’s adaptability to external economic factors but also leads to significant trends in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.”
WisdomTree European BTC ETPs over $500 AuM
Another issuer of exchange-traded instruments, WisdomTree, reported record results. Its European cryptocurrency exchange traded products (ETPs) have crossed the $500 million mark in assets under management. This figure marks a historic peak for WisdomTree’s European crypto ETPs, which experienced a net inflow of $59 million into its portfolio in 2024, driven primarily by WisdomTree Physical Bitcoin.
According to market experts, retail investors have increased investment more than institutional investors. As more financial advisors are approved to offer Bitcoin ETFs to clients, analysts expect volumes to increase over the next year.
“The launch of spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the US has changed the way many investors look cryptocurrencies As an investable asset class,” said Alexis Marinoff, head of European affairs at WisdomTree. “With bitcoin focused on the expected halving in April, investors are seeing more potential in the asset class.”
Greed is everywhere
The price of BTC has more than doubled in the past few months, recently surpassing $64,000. This rapid price increase has led to euphoric sentiment, with the Crypto Fear and Greed Index reaching an all-time high (86) in November 2021 when BTC hit its previous all-time high of $69,000.
Crypto Fear and Greed Index. Source: CoinMarketCap
This index ranges from 0 to 100, with 0 representing “extreme fear” and 100 representing “extreme greed”. A high index level indicates that investors are becoming overly greedy, believing that the value of the cryptocurrency will continue to rise. This often precedes a market correction as prices finally diverge from fundamentals.
Some analysts argue that such high greed indicates that the crypto market is due for a correction, as excessive optimism usually foreshadows a price reversal. Ultimately, while extreme greed suggests that crypto prices have significant room to fall, the persistence of current market optimism makes it challenging to predict the exact timing of a correction.
