Investors Withdrew More Than $1 Billion From Bitcoin ETF

From August 18 to 22, investors withdrew $1.17 billion from spot Bitcoin ETFs. The leader in outflows was the IBIT fund from BlackRock, which lost $615 million.

Source: SoSoValue.

Instruments based on the second-largest cryptocurrency also saw withdrawals of $237.73 million, breaking a 14-week streak of net capital inflows.

Source: SoSoValue.

Kronos Research CIO analyst Vincent Liu told The Block that the approval of staking for Ethereum-based ETFs will increase activity on the network and could trigger altcoins to rise.

“Ethereum is poised to take center stage,” he said.

LVRG Research Director Nick Ruck noted that large holders are reducing their positions in Bitcoin in favor of Ethereum, counting on further growth of the second cryptocurrency.

This trend is confirmed by market dynamics. Bitcoin dominance has decreased from 61% at the beginning of the month to 58.17%, according to TradingView. This indicates a redistribution of capital in favor of altcoins.

At the time of writing, Ethereum is trading around $4,592 after recently renewing its all-time high above $4,946.

Liu added that increased market volatility is likely in the short- to medium-term. Traders will be closely monitoring macroeconomic data, including the U.S. jobless claims on August 28.

Recall that the crypto market responded with growth to the speech of the Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. The head of the regulator hinted at his readiness to reduce the key rate in September.