Key Points
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. experienced net outflows on Feb. 18 as Bitcoin’s price dipped below $95,000.
- The declining possibility of a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve under Trump’s administration influenced this trend.
On February 18, a reversal in the flow of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) was observed in the United States. This coincided with Bitcoin’s price briefly falling under $95,000.
Outflows and Inflows
Data from SoSoValue indicated that the 12 spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a net outflow of $60.63 million on that day. This was a shift from the $66.19 million net inflows recorded the day before.
The largest outflows were from Bitwise’s BITB with $112.65 million leaving the fund, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC with $16.42 million in outflows. However, BlackRock’s IBIT managed to attract $68.44 million from investors, offsetting part of these outflows. The remaining nine Bitcoin ETFs registered no flows for the day.
Market Sentiment Shift
This shift in market sentiment is reflective of Bitcoin’s ongoing downtrend since its all-time high of $109,200 a month ago. One key factor behind this decline appears to be the decreasing likelihood of the establishment of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve in the U.S. under the Trump administration.
A prediction market tracking this possibility on Polymarket showed that the probability of President Donald Trump launching a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve within his first 100 days has dropped to 11% from its January peak of 40%. This suggests growing skepticism among investors regarding the administration’s commitment to such a reserve.
Despite this, discussions within the Trump administration about a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve are reportedly ongoing. David Sacks, a venture capitalist who now oversees crypto and AI policy, has confirmed that these conversations are taking place.
At the time of reporting, Bitcoin was down 0.4% over the past day, trading at $95,287. Meanwhile, Ethereum was trading sideways at $2,688 per coin.
