- U.S. Bitcoin ETFs saw $381.4M in daily inflows, the highest since January 30.
- Trump’s criticism of Powell and rate cut demands spurred investor risk-on sentiment.
- Ethereum ETFs saw $25.4M in outflows, extending an 8-week losing streak totaling $910M.
The U.S. Spot Bitcoin ETFs, on 21 April, recorded their highest daily inflows in over three months as political tensions between President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell increased. The total net inflows for 12 listed funds grew significantly to $381.4 million, nearly 250 percent increase from the previous day, according to data from SoSoValue.
This immediate increase followed Trump’s renewed criticism of how interest rates are being handled by Jerome Powell. Posting on Truth Social, Trump reiterated his desire for Powell’s removal and indicated that his “termination can’t come fast enough.” This comes amid broader market volatility driven by rising U.S.-China trade tensions and persistent inflation concerns.
ARKB, FBTC Lead as Institutional Demand Rebounds
The leader in inflows among the funds was ARK 21Shares’ ARKB, which received $116.13 million, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC bringing in $87.61 million. BITB from Bitwise also had a strong performance, bringing in $45.08 million while BlackRock’s IBIT did the same at $41.62 million. GBTC and BTC products of Grayscale added $36.6 million, and $32.55 million respectively. Other major contributors were VanEck’s HODL with $11.72 million, Franklin Templeton’s EZBC, with $10.1 million.
The inflows are clearly a reversal from the previous two weeks of outflow streak and an indication of a return of institutional interest. But net additions were only modest, posting $15.85 million last week, with the first signs of recovery intensifying from the weekend and through Monday.
On the other hand, Ethereum ETFs continued to face capital flight. On the same day, the segment recorded $25.42 million in outflows extending an eight consecutive week losing streak. Since the beginning of the current period, losses have run to approximately $910 million as a cumulative total, with investors failing to regain faith in the largest of two digital assets.
Broader Market Instability Pushes Investors Toward Alternative Assets
The ETF inflows came as financial markets opened with negative sentiment after the Good Friday holiday. On April 21 both The S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow dropped by around 2.4 to 2.5% each. Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar’s lows of multi-year levels against key currencies were seen simultaneously, with gold spiking above $3,450 per ounce in Asian trading hours on Thursday, April 22.
The rise in Bitcoin appeared to mirror that of gold, gaining 1.12% to push past $88,500. For the first time since late March, its market capitalization rose back above $1.75 trillion. According to analysts, Bitcoin’s status as a safe haven asset was the reason behind the parallel gains, especially during times of monetary uncertainty.
Kadan Stadelmann, Chief Technology Officer at Komodo said that the trend indicated a great change in the behaviour of investors amid declining trust in traditional financial systems. He noted that confidence in fiat currencies is eroding, especially as political pressure builds for more aggressive monetary easing.
