Bitcoin is facing renewed pressure as the largest single-day outflow from spot ETFs since late January coincides with fading price momentum near a key technical resistance level.
The 11 U.S.-listed spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which had attracted $3.29 billion in inflows across March and April, are now seeing a reversal in trend. On Wednesday, investors withdrew $635 million—the biggest daily outflow since Jan. 29, according to SoSoValue data.
The selling pressure has not been limited to a single session. Over the past five trading days, total outflows have reached $1.26 billion, trimming cumulative net inflows since the ETFs’ January 2024 debut to $58.5 billion, down from $59.76 billion just a week earlier.
At the same time, bitcoin’s rally has stalled. After climbing from $65,000 to above $80,000, prices have struggled to break past the 200-day simple moving average near $82,000. In the last 24 hours, bitcoin has slipped more than 2% to around $79,400.
The pullback is being linked to renewed concerns over U.S. inflation, even as traditional markets continue to push higher. Both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 posted fresh record highs on Wednesday, highlighting a divergence between crypto and equities.
For bullish investors, the scale of the $635 million outflow is difficult to overlook, especially given that strong ETF inflows were widely credited with driving bitcoin’s recent gains. At the same time, the macro backdrop appears to be turning less supportive as inflation risks re-emerge.
“A persistently strong CPI, a more hawkish Federal Reserve outlook, or another oil shock could weigh on bitcoin even in the presence of positive flows,” said Adam Haeems, head of asset management at Tesseract Group. “The key question is whether macro conditions remain loose enough for those flows to continue supporting prices.”
Despite this, the link between ETF flows and bitcoin’s price is weakening. The 90-day rolling correlation between bitcoin’s daily returns and changes in cumulative ETF inflows has dropped to 0.16, down sharply from 0.68 in February—suggesting little statistical relationship.
In practical terms, this means ETF flow direction alone is no longer a reliable indicator of short-term price moves. However, large-scale outflows like the one recorded Wednesday still carry significance, particularly when paired with fading momentum and shifting macro conditions.
About The Author
More Stories
BTC hits $82K, with Coinbase topping crypto equities as momentum builds around the Clarity Act.
The recent move in Bitcoin to $80,000 could be driven by a temporary liquidity crunch rather than lasting momentum.
As DeFi activity accelerates, Coinbase throws its weight behind Hyperliquid’s stablecoin expansion.