U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw large outflows on December 23, while their Ethereum counterparts saw large inflows in a pre-Christmas shake in the cryptocurrency market. It came on market movement during broad holiday influenced day trading lulls and investor fears.

With several bitcoin ETF funds posting fairly significant reductions, the 12 spot ETFs collectively lost $226.56 million in outflows. The figure that really caught my eye was BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) which brought in $31.66 million in inflows. However, seven other funds were blunted by sharp outflows.

Grayscale’s GBTC and Other Major Bitcoin ETF Declines

The biggest loser of the day was the Fidelity Advantage Bitcoin ETF (FBTC), which in a down day lost $145.97 million off its reserves. Coming in right behind was Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), losing $38.39 million. 

Meanwhile, Invesco’s BTCO ($25.56 million), Bitwise’s BITB ($23.75 million), and Ark Invest and 21Shares’ ARKB ($15.75 million) all reported additional losses. The BTC Mini Trust of Grayscale and Vaneck’s HODL also dipped $6.18 million and $2.62 million, respectively.

To say that these setbacks have dampened the whole picture for BTC ETFs would be an understatement. Investor interest in the funds has remained strong as they have together cumulatively recorded net inflows of $35.83 billion since January 11, 2024. Data from Sosovalue.com shows that roughly $3.52 billion was traded Monday, putting the funds with $105.08 billion of BTC.

Ethereum ETFs See $130.76 Million in Inflows

On the Ethereum side, however, a different story played out, with the nine Ethereum ETFs taking in a $130.76 million amount in inflows. The stack was topped by BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), which deposited $89.51 million in its reserves. Inflows in Fidelity Advantage Ethereum ETF (FETH) topped $46.37 million and Bitwise’s ETHW recorded a mild $963,720.

It’s not all funds shared in the success, the Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust suffered a $6.09 million outflow. Overall, though, ethereum ETFs have taken a cumulative $2.46 billion of net inflows since July 23. Monday saw the funds trading $494.25 million of funds and hold $12.05 billion in ether, which accounts for 2.94 percent of the cryptocurrency’s total market capitalization.

The divergence between BTC and ethereum ETFs serves to point to different investor sentiment and approaches as the year winds down. Meanwhile the ongoing interest in ethereum ETFs indicates optimism around the asset’s long term prospects while other bitcoin ETFs are battling short term volatility. However, both markets are still somewhat dynamic and continue to mirror the trajectory of other trends in the cryptocurrency space.

Conclusion

Bitcoin and ethereum ETFs offer contrasting performance, mirroring new investor sentiment during a holiday market jitters. Ethereum ETFs would have none of that and saw impressive in flows, as bitcoin ETFs battled major outflows. The fact that this divergence exists highlights just how quickly things can change on the cryptocurrency playing field as it begins to close out 2024.

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FAQs

  1. What happened to Bitcoin ETFs on December 23, 2024?
    Bitcoin ETFs saw $226.56 million in outflows, with Fidelity’s FBTC losing $145.97 million.

  2. How did ethereum ETFs perform?
    Ethereum ETFs gained $130.76 million, led by BlackRock’s ETHA with $89.51 million.

  3. What are the cumulative inflows for Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs?
    Bitcoin ETFs recorded $35.83 billion since January 2024, while ethereum ETFs gained $2.46 billion since July.

  4. How much do these ETFs hold now?
    Bitcoin ETFs hold $105.08 billion, and ethereum ETFs hold $12.05 billion in reserves.