Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs See October Outflows

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, the largest Bitcoin ETF, lost $165 million in a single week, underscoring how quickly risk appetite has cooled. Bitcoin funds still held a cumulative net inflow of $56.88 billion as of Oct. 6, with total net assets at $104.29 billion and daily trading volume of $2.66 billion, but October has already flipped negative with $617.17 million in net outflows.

Ethereum’s setback was sharper relative to its recent run. The funds posted $954.77 million in October outflows through Oct. 16, compared with inflows of $832.43 million in September and $1.85 billion in August, wiping out a meaningful share of the year’s gains. Ethereum ETFs still showed a positive cumulative net inflow of $12.94 billion, with $14.95 billion in assets and $645.81 million in daily volume, but the direction of travel has clearly turned.

The fund withdrawals matter because ETF flows have become one of the cleanest gauges of institutional demand for crypto. Persistent redemptions can weigh on spot prices, reduce trading activity and hit companies tied to the ecosystem, from exchanges to brokers and market makers.

That pressure was visible in the tokens themselves. Bitcoin was trading around $81,540 on Oct. 23, below its 50-day moving average of $81,786.86 and near the lower end of its recent range, while Ethereum was at $2,392.43, well under its 50-day moving average of $2,551.02. Adalytica’s Bitcoin Fear & Greed snapshot showed neutral sentiment at 33, while Ethereum’s awareness reading sat in “extreme fear” territory.

The shift leaves crypto investors watching whether outflows deepen into November or stabilize after a volatile October. A renewed pickup in ETF inflows would help confirm that the latest redemptions were a pause in demand, not the start of a broader unwind.