Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States recorded their highest daily inflows in three months, fuelled by renewed risk-on sentiment after President Donald Trump threatened to fire Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
According to data from SoSoValue, the 12 spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $381.4 million in net inflows on April 21, over 250% higher than the previous day’s inflows and marking the highest net inflows seen since Jan. 30.
Leading the charge was ARK 21Shares’ ARKB, which pulled in $116.13 million, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC with $87.61 million.
Bitwise’s BITB and BlackRock’s IBIT attracted $45.08 million and $41.62 million, while VanEck’s HODL and Franklin Templeton’s EZBC drew in $11.72 million and $10.1 million, respectively.
Grayscale’s GBTC and BTC funds also contributed to the momentum, adding $36.6 million and $32.55 million.
Despite the strong recovery in Bitcoin ETFs, their Ethereum counterparts haven’t been doing well, continuing a bearish trend this week with $25.42 million in outflows. This follows eight straight weeks of losses that have totaled nearly $910 million.
This wave of inflows followed last week’s reversal of a two-week outflow streak, with $15.85 million in net additions pointing to improved demand from institutional investors.
The surge coincided with Trump once again criticising Powell, posting on Truth Social that his “termination can’t come fast enough” following Powell’s remarks on delaying interest rate cuts. Trump also hinted at a desire for more aggressive monetary easing, with reports suggesting his team is exploring the legal options to remove Powell.
At the same time, rising U.S.-China trade tensions and persistent inflation concerns have pushed gold prices to new highs, with Bitcoin appearing to follow suit. Investors are viewing both assets as safe havens amid broader market instability.
U.S. markets reopened on April 21 after the Good Friday holiday, but sentiment remained negative. The S&P 500 dropped 2.4%, while the Nasdaq and Dow each fell 2.5%. Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar slipped to multi-year lows against major currencies, contributing to a shift in investor preference toward alternative assets.
Despite the equities downturn, crypto markets held firm over the weekend with Bitcoin (BTC) continuing its upward momentum on Monday, climbing past $88,500 on Tuesday while its market capitalization recovered back above $1.75 trillion for the first time since late March.
Gold also surged past $3,450 an ounce during Asian trading hours on April 22, as it continued to set back-to-back all-time highs in the past couple of days as capital flowed out of stocks.
Commenting on the situation, Komodo’s Chief Technology Officer, Kadan Stadelmann, told crypto.news that the inflows reflect a broader shift in investor behaviour as confidence in traditional financial systems continues to erode.
“Fiat currencies lack intrinsic value, and with confidence in the U.S. financial system deteriorating, investors are turning to assets like Bitcoin,” Stadelmann said.
According to Stadelmann, Trump’s push for aggressive rate cuts and threats to remove Fed Chair Jerome Powell are fuelling fears of monetary instability and accelerating the loss of trust in the dollar.
“All of these factors are good for Bitcoin, which many view as one of the safe havens from the U.S. Dollar, alongside gold, other precious metals, and select crypto assets. Therefore, Bitcoin ETFs are seeing inflows. Bitcoin’s price has certainly held up considering the trade war scenario,” he added.
