Investors add US$3.2 billion to crypto ETFs as bitcoin nears US$100,000 again and Fed faces stagflation fears
Bitcoin surged 10 percent last week to about US$94,000 — its best performance since the US presidential election — as exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tied to bitcoin and ether drew over US$3.2bn in inflows, according to Bloomberg data cited by Financial Post.
The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) alone pulled in nearly US$1.5bn, its largest weekly total of the year. Other notable gains included US$620m into ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF and US$574m into the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund.
Ether products also saw their first net inflows since February, Wintermute Trading Ltd. reported.
The crypto rally paralleled broader gains across risk assets. The S&P 500 rose 4.6 percent last week amid tariff optimism.
Analysts and investors are now revisiting bitcoin’s safe haven narrative, as the coin holds steady year-to-date while the S&P 500 has dropped nearly 6 percent.
Some point to bitcoin’s resilience during earlier market disruptions — including President Donald Trump’s trade war — as evidence of its emerging role as digital gold.
“Net spot ETF inflows, which are a barometer of institutional interest in bitcoin, have ramped up,” Simon Peters of eToro Group Ltd. wrote in a note quoted by Financial Post.
Peters added that with gold at record highs, bitcoin may be gaining appeal as an alternative asset amid persistent economic uncertainty.
According to Barron's, bitcoin traded at around US$97,500 Thursday morning, up 3.5 percent over 24 hours.
Despite volatility earlier in the week — including a dip after weaker-than-expected US GDP data — the cryptocurrency bounced back alongside major stock gains.
Microsoft and Meta earnings helped lift markets, while investors awaited Friday’s jobs report for the next macro trigger.
Traders are now watching whether bitcoin can reclaim the key US$100,000 threshold, which it last crossed on February 7, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Other major cryptocurrencies also rose: ether jumped 5.8 percent, Solana gained 7.6 percent, and XRP increased 4 percent.
Crypto analysts have also weighed in on the Fed’s looming policy decision. Forbes reported that US GDP contracted at a 0.3 percent annualized rate in Q1, the worst in three years.
Meanwhile, the PCE price index — the Fed’s preferred inflation metric — remained unchanged in March, marking its highest level since July 2024.
Kobeissi analysts warned of “stagflation,” citing rising inflation and a weakening economy.
They wrote that the Fed now faces a “lose-lose situation,” with markets betting that rate cuts will begin in June — a move expected to boost bitcoin and other risk assets.
“Since president Trump’s Liberation Day announcement, bitcoin has charted its own course,” said David Hernandez of 21Shares, in emailed comments quoted by Forbes.
He noted bitcoin had outperformed the Nasdaq, diverging from past patterns, and could continue to do so as Trump’s tariff policies reverberate through markets.
IBIT, currently holding US$56bn in assets, has seen consistent inflows even as US President Trump fluctuates on trade policy.
Financial Post noted Trump will meet with the top 220 holders of his memecoin, spurring a spike in its price.
Michael Saylor of MicroStrategy Inc. (now called Strategy) projected bitcoin could reach US$13m by 2045.
Speaking at a Bitwise Investment Advisers event last week, he predicted, “IBIT is a raging success — I’ll predict it will be the biggest ETF in the world in 10 years.”
But ETF Store Inc. president Nate Geraci responded that such a leap would be a “herculean feat.”
According to Financial Post, IBIT’s assets currently match only what Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF (VOO) has pulled in this year — US$51bn — while VOO leads globally with more than US$600bn in assets.
FxPro analyst Alex Kuptsikevich told Barron’s that bitcoin’s recent stability could signal a breakout. “Such long consolidations usually accumulate strength for further movement,” he said.
