US-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on April 17 recorded their biggest single-day capital inflow since January, as the reopening of a crucial Middle East shipping route sparked a broader market rotation into risky assets.
According to SoSoValue factsthe twelve products raised approximately $664 million in fresh capital on April 17.
The surge was catalyzed by an announcement from Iran’s foreign minister that the Strait of Hormuz had reopened to commercial shipping for the duration of the ceasefire.
The development, which was subsequently confirmed by US President Donald Trump, allayed immediate fears of disruptions to global energy supplies.
This macroeconomic relief led to a massive daily allocation to spot Bitcoin ETFs.
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) led the pack, raising $284 million on Friday alone. Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) followed with $163.4 million, while the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) raked in $117.9 million.
Morgan Stanley’s recently launched MSBT fund also raised $16.6 million during the session, showing early traction for the asset management giant’s bespoke offering.
Caution remains advised
Despite the robust numbers, market analysts remain cautious about the structural integrity of Bitcoin’s current rally.
Ecoinometry, a digital asset analysis platform, noted that while recent flows indicate active market participation, they do not have the building momentum that indicates a sustained breakout.
According to the company, the current market environment can be described as “participation without urgency” as the sector is still seeing parts of the outflow.
It explained:
“The daily data is inconsistent. Inflows are alternating with outflows, and more importantly, we have not seen any of the large one-day inflows that typically mark a strong wave of demand. When a rally is supported by conviction, the flows will cluster and build momentum. That has not happened yet.”
Taking this into consideration, Ecoinometrics concluded that Bitcoin’s price is currently right in line with baseflow levels, with no demand pushing the market beyond that benchmark.
Unless capital injections accelerate meaningfully and build consistent momentum, analysts warned that any attempt by Bitcoin to continue its rise will remain vulnerable.
Bitcoin ETFs record strongest weekly inflows since January
Meanwhile, the concentrated gain on April 17 marked the asset class’s strongest weekly performance since January.
Buoyed by the week-end rally, the range of US ETFs attracted total net inflows of $996 million over the past five days. Notably, this is the highest weekly intake since the approximately $1.4 billion recorded in early January.
The bumper harvest effectively saved what had started as a volatile trading week.
The period started with an outflow of $291 million on Monday before momentum shifted, resulting in gains of $411.5 million on Tuesday and $186 million on Wednesday, followed by a modest $26 million on Thursday.
Meanwhile, this was the third consecutive week of inflow for the products. During this period, the funds attracted approximately $1.7 billion in fresh capital.
At the time of writing, the total net assets of the spot Bitcoin ETFs stood at over $101 billion, bringing cumulative net inflows since inception to $57 billion.