Interest in Bitcoin continues to surge among institutional investors, as evidenced by record inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs, which continue to reach new all-time highs. This trend has played a significant role in driving the price of Bitcoin to its highest level in years.
Currently, spot ETFs have accumulated approximately 746,000 BTC, representing 3.81% of Bitcoin’s total supply. Inflows saw a remarkable increase on Wednesday, with exchange-traded funds adding over $500 million in a single day.
Source: crypto-etfs.com
Notably, alongside these inflows, the trading volumes of these exchange-traded funds have also seen significant growth. Yesterday, the total volume of U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs exceeded $6 billion. BlackRock’s IBIT, in particular, achieved a trading volume of $3.3 billion in one day, smashing the previous record of $1.357 billion.
Currently, IBIT is a leader in both trading volume and inflows, holding around 141,369 BTC. Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust holds the second position (by number of inflows) with 99,340 BTC.
Significantly, Fidelity has recently advised its clients to allocate 1-3% of their portfolios to cryptocurrency, a noteworthy suggestion considering its $12.6 trillion in assets under management. This recommendation could catalyze substantial new investments in cryptocurrency and Bitcoin in the medium term, potentially setting a precedent for other wealth managers to follow.
While Bitcoin garners much attention, Ethereum has also carved out a significant presence in institutional portfolios. A recent report from Bybit indicates that Ether has surpassed Bitcoin as the preferred crypto asset among institutions, primarily due to the anticipated benefits of the upcoming Ethereum upgrade.
As institutional interest in cryptocurrency continues to grow, so does the competition among infrastructure providers catering to institutional investors. Kraken, one of the oldest exchanges in the space, recently announced the launch of Kraken Institutional, a new suite of products and services specifically designed for institutional trading, staking, and custody of crypto assets.
This move by Kraken represents a significant entry into a market currently dominated by Coinbase, which acts as the custodian for eight of the 10 newly launched Bitcoin ETFs. Kraken is now positioning itself to capture a share of this lucrative market.
As an increasing number of institutions and infrastructure providers enter the market, the outlook for Bitcoin and altcoins becomes exceedingly bullish. It is crucial to recognize that this bullish trend is only beginning, with little interest yet from retail investors. As both institutions and retail investors rush into the crypto space, the price of cryptocurrency could easily reach unprecedented highs.
