A concerning trend has emerged in the cryptocurrency market as investors have pulled nearly $3.8 billion from U.S.-listed spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) over the past five weeks. This marks the longest outflow streak since February 2025, with BlackRock's IBIT fund leading the way, losing $2.13 billion in the same period.
The outflows are a reflection of ongoing institutional wariness towards bitcoin, which has been exacerbated by the early October crash that exposed vulnerabilities on offshore exchanges such as Binance. Analysts attribute the trend to lingering U.S.-Iran tensions, President Donald Trump's fresh global tariff announcement, and technical price-chart factors.