Key Points
- Bitcoin’s bull cycle will continue as long as Bitcoin ETFs demand is net positive, according to CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju.
- Despite short-term outflows, institutional interest in Bitcoin ETFs is growing, with significant investments from major firms.
CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju has expressed his belief that the bullish trend of Bitcoin will continue as long as the demand for Bitcoin ETFs stays net positive.
On February 20, Ju noted that even though inflows into Bitcoin ETFs have slowed down, they still surpass the outflows. He cautioned that a continued period of net negative demand could potentially indicate the beginning of a bear market.
Bitcoin ETFs’ Performance
SoSoValue data reveals that on February 19, Bitcoin ETFs reported a $71.07 million outflow, marking the second day in a row of net redemptions. Fidelity’s FBTC saw the largest withdrawals at $48.39 million, followed by Valkyrie’s BRRR, ARK 21Shares’ ARKB, and VanEck’s HODL. At the same time, BlackRock’s IBIT and seven other ETFs saw no significant movement. Despite these short-term outflows, the total trading volume remained strong at $2.05 billion.
Growing Institutional Interest
Despite these short-term outflows, the institutional interest in Bitcoin ETFs is on the rise. On February 14, Mubadala Investment Company, the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Abu Dhabi, announced that it had invested $436.9 million in BlackRock IBIT shares. This makes the firm one of the first major sovereign wealth funds to allocate a portion of its portfolio to cryptocurrency.
Moreover, in a February 13 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Barclays disclosed that it now owns 2.47 million shares of IBIT, valued at $131 million as of December 31. This UK-based bank joins other organizations, such as JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, who have increased their exposure to Bitcoin ETFs.
Currently, Bitcoin is trading around $97,000, a significant drop from its peak of $109,200 last month. One of the main reasons for this decline could be the market’s dwindling confidence in the Trump administration’s ability to quickly establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. Investors anticipated the market to move quickly post-election, but uncertainty has led to a surge in volatility.
