The spot US Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) witnessed a surge in January, with its value reaching $5 billion. However, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) dropped below the coveted $100,000 mark over the weekend. Now, investors are closely monitoring the impact of the increasing inflows into the spot ETFs on Bitcoin’s price.
According to data from SoSoValue, the 12 spot Bitcoin ETFs trading in the US attracted approximately $5.25 billion in inflows in January. This represents a significant increase from the $4.53 billion inflows accumulated by the funds in December 2024.
Leading the gains in January was BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which recorded total net monthly inflows of $3.23 billion. As of January 31, the fund’s net assets stood at $59.39 billion, marking a monthly surge of $7.67 billion. Fidelity’s FBTC came in second with monthly inflows of $1.28 billion in January. Its net assets expanded from $18.87 billion at the beginning of the month to $21.76 billion. Ark Invest’s ARKB is the third-largest spot Bitcoin ETF with net assets totaling $2.95 billion.
The surge in Bitcoin ETFs in January coincides with President Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Crypto market participants are hopeful that favorable crypto policies will be established under Trump’s new government, particularly in light of his recent commitment to the industry. In a previous update, we discussed Trump’s appointment of crypto-friendly Mark Uyeda as the acting Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Uyeda’s appointment is seen as a potential relaxation of the SEC’s crypto policy during Trump’s second term.
However, Min Jung, a research analyst at Presto Research, noted that the positive crypto sentiment stemming from Trump’s reelection is gradually waning. This is largely due to the President’s lack of specific mentions of cryptocurrencies since his inauguration, as previously discussed by CNF.
Simultaneously, the crypto market witnessed over $1 billion in liquidations of long and short positions over the weekend. This followed Trump’s announcement of upcoming tariffs on imported goods, which appeared to trigger a widespread sell-off in risk assets.
In light of the broader crypto sell-off, BTC dropped by 4.07% in the past 24 hours and was trading at $95,753 at the time of writing. However, the daily trading volume increased by 177%, indicating growing investor interest.
As mentioned in our previous article, Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan believes that Bitcoin’s four-year cycle may have come to an end. He stated that the halving event, which used to be the primary driver of price increases, is no longer as influential. Hougan believes that macroeconomic factors and institutional acceptance now have a greater impact. He predicts a strong Bitcoin market in 2025 but cautions that 2026 may not follow the previous trends.
Similarly, Hougan wrote in an Xpost that the 12 Bitcoin ETFs could attract over $50 billion in inflows this year.
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