Bitcoin vs. Ethereum: Institutional Investors Diverge as Digital Asset Funds See Outflows

• Digital asset outflows reached $30 million in three weeks.
• Bitcoin and multi-asset investments see positive inflows despite overall market caution.
• The U.S. leads regional inflows, while Germany, Canada, Hong Kong, and Switzerland experience substantial outflows.

Digital asset investment funds have experienced $30 million in outflows over the past three weeks, with Ethereum facing its largest withdrawals since 2022, according to recent data .

Earlier in the week, most Exchange-Traded Funds (ETF) investment vehicles posted minor outflows, contrasting with previous performances. iShares ETFs recorded a positive inflow of $84 million, with a month-to-date (MTD) total of $1.1 billion. Fidelity ETFs also reported inflows of $13 million, adding to their year-to-date (YTD) total of $9.2 billion.

However, these positive inflows were offset by Grayscale Investments’ significant outflow of $153 million during the same period. Meanwhile, trading volume rose by 43% compared to the previous week, although this figure remains below the $14.2 billion weekly average for 2024.

Bitcoin remained the most popular asset in the cryptocurrency market, attracting $10 million in weekly inflows, equating to $15.5 billion in YTD inflows. Additionally, Litecoin and Solana saw minor positive inflows alongside altcoins like XRP and Chainlink.

Ethereum posted its worst performance since 2022, experiencing outflows totaling $61 million over the past week. This figure brings its net inflow to $119 million over the past two weeks, making it the worst-performing digital asset YTD in net flows.

In contrast, multi-asset investments and Bitcoin topped the inflows with $17.9 million and $10 million, respectively. Short Bitcoin recorded an outflow of $4.2 million last week, suggesting a shift in sentiment. Despite the positive cryptocurrency market outlook this year, blockchain entities have suffered outflows of $545 million, representing 19% of Assets under Management (AuM).

The United States led regional inflows with $43 million for the week, alongside Australia and Brazil, which had positive inflows of $2.9 million and $7.6 million, respectively. On the other hand, Germany and Canada saw substantial outflows, losing $28.5 million and $14.4 million, respectively, for the week. Hong Kong and Switzerland also posted outflows of $23 million and $13 million, respectively.

Overall, the digital asset market showed mixed performance across various sectors, suggesting a cautious investment landscape.