Bitcoin (BTC) closed the week at around $52,150, marking a significant 7.9% increase from the previous week’s closing price of approximately $48,300. The week started with strong price growth, reaching a peak trading price of about $52,800 on Thursday before stabilizing between $51,000 and $52,000 over the weekend and ultimately closing just above $52,000.
Last week saw Bitcoin return to trading above $50,000 for the first time in over two years, indicating strong momentum following the approval of BTC ETFs Spot. The last time BTC traded above $50,000 was in December 2021, after reaching its all-time high of $69,000 in November of the same year. This period marked the beginning of a significant downtrend that continued throughout 2022, resulting in a price drop to around $16,000 by the end of that year.
Market momentum was driven by the high demand for BTC ETFs Spot. Last week, the total net inflow into BTC ETFs reached approximately $2.3 billion, almost double the $1.2 billion recorded in the previous week, and accounting for nearly half of the total net inflow since inception, which is currently at about $5 billion.
Net inflows have remained positive for 16 consecutive trading days since January 26th. However, outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin ETF (GBTC) increased slightly last week, reaching around $625 million, a 50% rise compared to the $415 million outflow in the previous week. This indicates an increase in profit-taking by investors following the recent surge in BTC price.
Among the 9 ETFs launched on January 11th, Blackrock Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) leads with over $5 billion in assets under management (AUM), totaling around $6.2 billion. Fidelity BTC ETF (FBTC) follows with approximately $4.5 billion AUM, while 21Shares & ARK Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) holds the third position with about $1.5 billion AUM. Another ETF, Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB), crossed the $1 billion AUM mark last week, reaching around $1.2 billion AUM.
Trading volume remained strong, with BTC ETFs seeing a cumulative trading volume of about $9.6 billion last week, averaging over $1.9 billion daily. Since January 11th, the total trading volume has been $45.3 billion, with a daily average of approximately $1.7 billion, indicating above-average trading volume for the week and strong buy pressure and activity around these ETFs.
Looking at the macroeconomic landscape, the upcoming Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting is a month away. Market expectations suggest a 90% chance of no rate change, with a 25bps cut anticipated between the end of Q2 and the start of Q3 this year. This anticipation of less restrictive monetary policy from the FED increases the risk exposure that market participants are willing to take, contributing to the strong momentum of risk assets like BTC, cryptocurrencies, and stocks, with the S&P 500 recently hitting a new all-time high.
