Spot Bitcoin ETFs See Continued Outflows — $166M Weekly, Near $4B Over Five Weeks

Published: 2026-02-20 11:23:09 |

Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded another week of net outflows — about $165.8 million on Feb 19 — extending a multi-week redemption trend that has withdrawn nearly $4 billion from these products over five weeks. Weekly withdrawals have accelerated since mid‑January (weekly totals include roughly $403.9M, $359.9M, $318.1M, $1.49B and $1.33B). Major issuers led the selling in earlier weeks (notably BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC), while flows have been mixed across smaller products. Analysts are divided: some call the selling a controlled deleveraging after strong prior gains, reducing leverage and short-term positioning; others warn it may represent persistent selling pressure and weakening institutional demand. Despite outflows, Bitcoin price has shown resilience, edging up about 1–2% during the latest reported bounce (around $67.8k–$69.5k across reports), with broader crypto market cap rising modestly and several altcoins posting gains. However, the bounce occurred on lower trading volume, which market participants interpret as limited buyer conviction. Key takeaways for traders: continued ETF redemptions can amplify downside during price drops and increase market liquidity risk, but current outflows remain a modest share of total ETF AUM and could normalize if deleveraging completes. Traders should monitor daily ETF flow data, on‑chain selling indicators, and trading volume to confirm whether redemptions represent transient rebalancing or a more sustained shift in institutional demand.

Neutral

The story points to continued net outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs — nearly $4 billion over five weeks — which is a clear negative liquidity signal and could exert downward pressure during price drops. However, outflows so far are still a small fraction of total ETF AUM (~$87B reported) and can reflect temporary deleveraging or portfolio rebalancing rather than permanent loss of demand. Price action has been mixed: Bitcoin held up and even rose modestly during the latest week, while the rebound occurred on lower trading volume, indicating limited buyer conviction. For short-term trading, persistent ETF redemptions increase downside risk and the potential for sharper drawdowns if selling accelerates; traders should watch daily ETF flow prints, net exchange flows, and on‑chain selling metrics for early signs of intensified distribution. For the medium to long term, if outflows represent completed deleveraging and institutional demand stabilizes, the impact may fade and flows could normalize — supporting a recovery. Given these offsetting factors (meaningful redemptions vs. AUM scale and possible transient deleveraging), the overall price-impact classification is neutral.