Bitcoin ETFs Snap Nine-Day Inflow Streak as Ethereum Funds Extend Their Run

Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds broke a nine-day winning streak on Friday, shedding money just as their Ethereum counterparts kept pulling in fresh cash.

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $201.9 million in net outflows on Aug. 28, according to data from SoSoValue, ending a stretch of consecutive inflows that had run since mid-August. The reversal trimmed cumulative net inflows to about $55.1 billion, with the funds now holding roughly $93.9 billion in total net assets. Decrypt’s ETF flow tracker flipped its Bitcoin sentiment reading to “bearish” on the day.

An ETF, or exchange-traded fund, is an investment vehicle that holds an underlying asset and trades on a traditional stock exchange, letting investors buy and sell shares through an ordinary brokerage account. A spot Bitcoin ETF holds actual Bitcoin, and each share represents a claim on a slice of that stash. That structure gives investors indirect exposure to Bitcoin’s price without the friction of buying the asset directly.

That convenience is a big part of why the funds appeal to traditional and institutional investors, and the funds have had a remarkable run since launching. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs debuted in January 2024 after years of regulatory rejections, and quickly became some of the fastest-growing ETFs in history.

These days, daily flows swing between heavy accumulation and sharp withdrawals in step with price swings and the macro backdrop, which is why market observers keep a close eye on these flows as an indicator of broader sentiment.

Friday’s pullback caps an otherwise strong run for the funds. Bitcoin ETFs drew $2.8 billion over an eight-day streak as Bitcoin tested $80,000, and earlier notched their biggest single-day haul since May. During the streak, daily inflows repeatedly topped $300 million, peaking above $600 million on Aug. 20.

Ethereum ETFs, by contrast, showed no such fatigue. The funds took in $102.1 million on Aug. 28, extending a 10-day inflow streak, per SoSoValue, and lifting their cumulative net inflows to about $12.9 billion against $13.8 billion in total net assets.

Decrypt’s tracker kept its Ethereum reading “bullish.” The steady demand marks a notable shift, with Ethereum products in recent sessions nearly matching or rivaling Bitcoin’s daily intake despite managing a far smaller asset base.

The diverging flows landed as Bitcoin slipped following Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s hawkish remarks at Jackson Hole, which cooled a rally that had carried the token toward $80,000. Bitcoin later recovered to around $79,000 over the weekend.

The single-day outflow is modest relative to the tens of billions the funds have amassed since launching, and the interruption of a streak doesn’t necessarily signal a broader reversal in institutional appetite, which has stayed robust across both assets.