Bitcoin ETF inflows stopped rising for nine consecutive years, and BTC fell below US$78,000

The U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF ends nine consecutive gains, and BTC falls back below US$78,000.

The U.S. -listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) ended nine consecutive days of net inflows, and Bitcoin prices fell back below the US$78,000 mark. Despite the pause in demand, the overall performance of this product remained strong in August, with total monthly inflows remaining positive in the final days of the month.

SoSoValue data showed that the U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF recorded a net outflow of US$201.8 million last Friday, ending the previous nine consecutive trading days of net inflows of more than US$3 billion. Although there is only one U.S. trading day left in August, monthly net inflows remain in a positive range of US$3.3 billion. At the same time, the total net asset value of this category of products has fallen back to $97.6 billion after breaking through the $100 billion mark on Thursday.

Key Points

Last Friday, the U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF turned into a net outflow of US$201.8 million, ending nine consecutive days of capital inflows. SoSoValue reported that before the correction, the cumulative net inflow of the product over the previous nine trading days exceeded US$3 billion. The Ethereum and Ripple spot ETFs continued to attract funds last Friday, recording net inflows of US$102.2 million and US$26.2 million respectively. Eric Balchunas, an analyst at Bloomberg ETF, said that the Solana ETF has maintained its positive momentum and has reached an important milestone in cumulative net inflows. ARK21 Shares led the Bitcoin ETF outflows that day, while most other funds recorded negative values or only small inflows.

Bitcoin ETF reappears after strong rally

Even though the overall tone remained positive in August, demand for bitcoin-related ETFs slowed last Friday. This change should be seen as a "cooling down" rather than a complete reversal: although the net capital inflow record for this type of product has been interrupted, the cumulative data for the month is still in a positive range. According to Farside Investors, ARK21 Shares 'spot Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) had the largest redemption on the day, with a net outflow of US$114.9 million. Bitwise's Bitcoin ETF (BITB) followed closely, with a net outflow of $49.7 million. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT)-the largest U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF by asset size-also posted a net outflow of $33.4 million last Friday. Among many products, Morgan Stanley's Bitcoin Trust (MSBT) was the exception, recording a net inflow of $09.3 million. This means that although the overall flow of funds turned negative that day, not all products suffered a uniform outflow of funds-some funds still attracted incremental demand.

Strong demand for altcoin ETFs: Ethereum and Ripple continue to attract funds

In the broader ETF funding data last Friday, the divergence between Bitcoin and some altcoin sectors was particularly prominent. Despite the reversal of Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple ETFs continued to receive net inflows. The SoValue report showed that the U.S. spot Ethereum ETF had a net inflow of $102.2 million last Friday. The last time Ethereum funds recorded a net outflow was on August 11, which suggests that last Friday's earnings appeared to continue the recovery, or at least maintain a stable demand pattern. For Ripple, SoValue data showed a net inflow of US$26.2 million last Friday. The last time Ripple funds experienced a net outflow was on August 5, indicating that this category can remain resilient during periods of weakening Bitcoin ETF funds flows. This divergence is important for investors because it shows that not all "risk appetite" or "risk aversion" behavior is reflected solely through Bitcoin ETFs. If capital inflows from Ethereum and Ripple continue, while Bitcoin ETFs experience intermittent pullbacks, this may mean that investors are making a more selective placement among major digital asset classes rather than withdrawing from the crypto space entirely.

Solana ETF hits new milestone amid continued momentum

Solana ETF also remains resilient. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said on Friday that cumulative net inflows into the Solana ETF category have reached $1.7 billion and there has been no sustained outflows. He described this broader context as a difficult period for cryptocurrencies in the first half of the year, calling it a "nightmare downturn", but still described the Solana ETF's performance as "impressive." Balcunas also noted that Bitwise's Solana ETF became the first product in the category to break the $1 billion mark, highlighting that the product line is beginning to show clearer differences in size. Taken together, Solana and multi-asset fund flow patterns suggest that investors may be diversifying their exposure into multiple single-asset ETF themes rather than focusing solely on Bitcoin-at least at this particular stage of market activity. [TAG

Friday's data showed how quickly inflows into bitcoin ETFs can reverse when price movements are weak, even if broader monthly totals remain positive. Traders and long-term ETF investors are likely to be watching closely to see if outflows continue over the next few trading days or if the product quickly reestablishes net inflow momentum. At the same time, they will also be watching to see if Ethereum, Ripple and Solana funds continue to attract money-either in sync with Bitcoin or independently of Bitcoin.