Key Takeaways
- Bitcoin ETFs lost $450.33M on Tuesday, their biggest daily outflow since June 25.
- The reversal hit crypto broadly as ether lost $141.47M, while solana alone drew inflows.
- The Fed’s Sept. 16 rate decision could steer bitcoin flows after the Senate cloture vote failed.
Bitcoin ETF Assets Drop Nearly $5B as Bitcoin’s Price Falls Below $76K
The mood changed quickly.
A day after bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) opened the week with $160 million of fresh capital, investors pulled money from every major bitcoin fund reporting activity on Tuesday, Sept. 15.
The selloff coincided with the Senate’s failure to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act and a slide in bitcoin’s price below $76,000. The cloture motion failed 49-50, short of the three-fifths threshold required to advance.
Fidelity’s FBTC led bitcoin ETF redemptions with $214.75 million, followed by Blackrock’s IBIT at $161.69 million. Grayscale’s GBTC shed $44.14 million. Ark & 21Shares’ ARKB and Bitwise’s BITB lost $17.38 million and $12.36 million, respectively. No bitcoin ETF recorded an inflow. Trading value jumped to $4.35 billion, while net assets fell by almost $5 billion to $95.72 billion.
Ether Joins the Selloff
Ether ETFs also came under pressure, posting $141.47 million in net outflows.
Blackrock’s ETHA accounted for $97.97 million of the exits. Bitwise’s ETHW lost $34.40 million, Grayscale’s ETHE shed $17.47 million, and Fidelity’s FETH recorded a $7.18 million withdrawal.
Some buying remained. Blackrock’s ETHB attracted $12.38 million, while 21Shares’ TETH and Morgan Stanley’s MSSE added $2.40 million and $776,050. Ether ETF trading value reached $1.99 billion, with net assets dropping to $15.42 billion.
Solana Holds Green as XRP Stays Quiet
Solana ETFs were the exception to Tuesday’s broad weakness, attracting $1.35 million. The entire inflow landed in Bitwise’s BSOL. Trading value reached $81.20 million, while net assets closed at $1.38 billion.
HYPE ETFs lost $3.89 million, entirely from Bitwise’s BHYP. Net assets ended at $407.53 million.
XRP ETFs recorded no net flows, leaving net assets at $1.41 billion. The subdued activity had little impact on XRP’s price, with an 8% intraday drop during a volatile session for crypto.
Fed Decision Becomes the Next Pressure Point
Attention now turns to Wednesday’s Federal Reserve decision.
As of early Sept. 16, fed-funds futures implied roughly a 90% probability of a quarter-point rate increase. The Fed is scheduled to announce its decision at 2 p.m. ET, followed by its press conference at 2:30 p.m.
Long-term borrowing costs are already elevated, with the 10-year Treasury yield trading around 5% ahead of the meeting.
For bitcoin, the Fed’s guidance may carry as much weight as the rate decision itself. Tuesday’s ETF withdrawals showed how quickly institutional positioning can shift when regulatory uncertainty and tighter financial conditions arrive together.
