NEW YORK, Jan 31, 2026, 14:46 EST
- On Jan. 29, U.S.-listed spot bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows totaling $817.9 million, while spot ether ETFs dropped by $155.6 million.
- At 12:48 p.m. ET on Saturday, Bitcoin dropped 6.53% to $78,719.63, while ether slid 11.76% to $2,387.77.
- Analysts pointed to a risk-off mood, changing Fed expectations, and forced unwinds in leveraged crypto positions.
U.S.-listed spot bitcoin and ether ETFs experienced outflows approaching $1 billion on Thursday. Investors withdrew $817.9 million from bitcoin funds and $155.6 million from ether funds, according to data. Yahoo
Spot ETFs, which directly hold bitcoin or ether and trade like regular shares, have played a crucial role linking crypto with traditional investment portfolios. The sharp wave of redemptions is significant, given that much of the market’s narrative around “institutional demand” has relied on consistent ETF purchases.
Bitcoin dropped under $80,000 on Saturday following the appointment of former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh to head the Fed. The news boosted the U.S. dollar and put pressure on speculative assets, Reuters reported. Reuters
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) dropped by $317.8 million on Thursday, with Fidelity’s FBTC seeing $168 million in outflows and Grayscale’s GBTC losing $119.4 million, according to a CoinDesk analysis cited by FXStreet. BlackRock’s ether fund ETHA fell $54.9 million, while Fidelity’s FETH recorded $59.2 million in withdrawals, dragging total ether ETF assets down to $16.75 billion. Bitrue research lead Andri Fauzan Adziima called the decline a “risk-off wave” and described it as “a leverage shakeout” rather than the onset of a bear market. Fxstreet
Bitcoin ETFs have seen outflows this January, with spot bitcoin funds shedding roughly $1.1 billion so far, according to Cointelegraph citing SoSoValue. Despite the pullback, these ETFs still manage about $107.65 billion in assets, representing around 6.5% of bitcoin’s total market cap near $1.65 trillion, the report added. Tradingview
Farside data reported by NewsBTC shows U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs have seen outflows totaling about $1.50 billion over the last five trading days. Spot ether ETFs lagged behind, dropping roughly $327 million. On Jan. 14, though, bitcoin ETFs experienced a surge, pulling in $840 million — a reminder that these flows can reverse quickly. Tradingview
Markets turned unsettled. Gold dropped roughly 4% on Thursday after briefly topping $5,300 an ounce. Microsoft shares also took a hit, sliding about 10% that day, deepening the risk-off mood.
Damien Boey, portfolio strategist at Wilson Asset Management, noted that talk of tighter liquidity can undercut “all the hedges against balance sheet expansion” — including gold and crypto. Sean Dawson, head of research at Derive.xyz, pointed to “fears around AI exuberance” as a “big contributor” to the recent selloff. Reuters
CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost highlighted heavy leverage on decentralized derivatives platform Hyperliquid, noting that $87.1 million in long positions got liquidated in just a few hours.
CoinShares revealed $1.73 billion in outflows from digital-asset investment products last week, marking the largest weekly withdrawal since mid-November 2025. Bitcoin and ether led the selloff. James Butterfill, head of research at CoinShares, attributed the redemptions to “dwindling expectations for interest rate cuts” and disappointment that crypto hasn’t become part of the “debasement trade”—a hedge against currency erosion. Meanwhile, Solana products bucked the trend, attracting $17.1 million in inflows. Coinshares
ETF flows tend to reverse quickly, with daily swings often driven by short-term hedging rather than lasting conviction. If volatility remains elevated—or if forced liquidations pick up—the outflow streak might extend further.
Despite recent redemptions, the funds still hold significant size and are deeply woven into the market’s daily operations. Prices are dropping for now, and cash is moving accordingly.
