Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) based in the United States experienced a significant increase in net inflows on March 4, totaling $562 million. This surge coincided with Bitcoin’s price surpassing $68,000, bringing it closer to its all-time high of approximately $69,000. These inflows mark the third-largest day of inflows for spot Bitcoin ETFs since they were introduced on January 11.
Despite smaller players and the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) experiencing outflows, spot Bitcoin ETFs still saw substantial net inflows on March 4. GBTC, in particular, witnessed outflows of $368 million on that day. Among the spot Bitcoin ETFs, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust recorded the largest inflows, amounting to $420 million, followed by Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust with $404 million. The net inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs on March 4 were ten times higher than the amount of new BTC generated through mining activities.
On March 4, the trading volume for spot Bitcoin ETFs reached a peak of $5.5 billion, making it the second-highest volume day since the launch of these products. The significant trading volume, coupled with institutional demand, means that spot Bitcoin ETFs, exchange-traded products, and trackers now handle approximately 1 million BTC, which accounts for roughly 5.13% of the total BTC circulating supply.
Despite experiencing over $9 billion in outflows, spot Bitcoin ETFs have seen net inflows of $7.5 billion worth of BTC in the two months since their launch. BlackRock’s IBIT has already reached $10 billion in assets under management, a milestone that took gold ETFs nearly two years to achieve.
There is a possibility of increased demand for Bitcoin ETFs 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 halved, even though current market demand already exceeds new supply by a factor of ten. This reduction in supply could potentially act as a catalyst for further increases in the price of BTC.