Outline:
Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds based in the United States started 2026 positively, recording a total net inflow of approximately $646 million on the first day of trading, even though sentiment in the wider cryptocurrency market was varied.
On Friday, the current price of Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs received net inflows of $471.3 million, while spot Ether (ETH) ETFs brought in $174.5 million, increasing the total inflows for both ETF categories to $645.8 million,according to Farside data.
The U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded their biggest net inflow in 35 trading days, following a $524 million surge on Nov. 11, when the eleven U.S.-based ETFs collectively experienced a single-day influx.
In the meantime, spot Ether ETFs experienced their highest single-day inflow in 15 trading days, the biggest amount since December 9, when $177.7 million was noted.
Crypto exchange-traded funds faced a challenging December due to the overall market downturn.
Individuals involved in the cryptocurrency market frequently regard ETF inflows as a reflection of broader investor sentiment towards this asset category, as well as a possible hint about near-term price movements, based on whether ETFs are receiving new funds or facing continuous withdrawals.
In the last 30 days, the current prices of Bitcoin and Ether have decreased by 1.56% and 1.39%, respectively, extending a larger decline that started soon after Bitcoin reached an all-time high of $125,100 on October 5, which was then followed by a notable $19 billion liquidation incident on October 10.
The decline has made market participants more cautious regarding the cryptocurrency market.
The Crypto Fear and Greed Index, which gauges general market sentiment, has remained in the “Extreme Fear” to “Fear” range since early November.
On Sunday, the Indexreturned to “Extreme Fear” with a rating of 25.
Institutional investors are “purchasing heavily,” according to a cryptocurrency executive.
Tonso’s head of marketing “Wal”saidon an X post on Friday that stated Bitcoin ETFs “are back,” claiming “many institutional investors sold their $BTCin Q4 ’25 for tax loss harvesting.
“Now they’re loading up, this is only the start,” Wal said.
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Even though the cryptocurrency markets faced challenges in the last months of the year, U.S. investors invested more than $31.77 billion.into US crypto ETFs in 2025.
U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds captured the majority of investor attention, drawing in $21.4 billion in net inflows during 2025. Nevertheless, this represented a decline from the $35.2 billion in net inflows recorded in 2024.
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