The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) has witnessed a substantial decline in outflows, marking a notable record low that stands nearly 90% lower than the preceding day’s figures.
This significant shift coincided with Bitcoin’s resurgence following the release of the latest United States inflation data, injecting volatility into the market.
According to data from Farside, on April 10, GBTC experienced outflows totaling $17.5 million, starkly contrasting the $154.9 million recorded just a day prior on April 9.
Bitcoin’s price has surged by 2.08% over the past 24 hours, now valued at $70,542, as reported by CoinMarketCap. This increase follows a dip to local lows of $67,482 subsequent to the March U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report unveiling a higher-than-anticipated 3.5% year-on-year increase. This development raised concerns regarding potential delays in interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Observers within the crypto industry have expressed optimism regarding the slowdown in GBTC outflows, which have amounted to $16 billion since the fund transitioned to a spot Bitcoin ETF in January.
Thomas Fahrer, CEO of the crypto-focused reviews portal Apollo, questioned his 41,500 followers on April 11, asking if “GBTC selling [is] over?” He noted that the outflows on April 10 amounted to approximately 250 Bitcoin, representing nearly a 95% drop from the beginning of the week.
Just days earlier, on April 8, Grayscale witnessed outflows of 4,288 Bitcoin, totaling $303 million.
The previous lowest outflow occurred on Feb. 26, amounting to $22.4 million, with the average daily outflow over four months standing at $257.8 million.
Among BTC ETFs, including BlackRock IBIT, Fidelity FBTC, ARK’s ARKB, and Bitwise BITB, only positive inflows were registered on April 10, according to Farside data.
FBTC led with an inflow of $76.3 million, its largest since April 5, bringing its total inflows to $8,043.2 billion. The collective net inflows into Bitcoin ETFs now stand at $12,494.5 billion.
The upcoming Bitcoin halving, expected around April 20, is another focal point for the market. The event will halve the Bitcoin block issuance rate from 6.25 coins per block to 3.125.
Historically, halvings, which occur every four years, have led to surges in Bitcoin’s price due to reduced supply growth.
With the current enthusiasm around spot Bitcoin ETFs, the market anticipates even greater demand, potentially intensifying the rally.
In a Bloomberg interview on April 9, Fred Thiel, CEO of Bitcoin mining firm Marathon Digital, suggested that recent spot Bitcoin ETF approvals have brought substantial capital into the market, accelerating the market’s appreciation, typically expected after a Bitcoin halving.
Bitcoin’s price has surged by more than 60% in the months leading to the halving, with experts indicating a continued bullish market driven mainly by growing demand rather than the halving’s supply cut.
Andras Kristof, CEO and co-founder of Galaxis, shared his perspective with Crypto.news, stating, “The past halvings have brought remarkable supply shock, but this year’s event will be different. This is because we’ve never had both a supply shock and a demand shock at the same time. And the catalyst is undoubtedly ETFs – single-day inflows into spot BTC ETFs have already topped $1 billion.”
Kristof suggested that if demand for the new ETFs remains high, it will only add to the daily buying pressure. Coupled with reduced supply, this could result in a significant spike in Bitcoin price and volatility.
“While the price of Bitcoin has more than doubled over the past year, there is steam left in the rally. The halving effect will very likely pull institutional investors in from the sidelines as they succumb to the fear of missing out.”
