TL;DR
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs logged a ninth inflow day on April 24, bringing the streak to $2.1 billion, the longest run since September 2025.
- Weekly ETF inflows reached $823.7 million, with BlackRock’s IBIT contributing $983 million over the week, its strongest weekly showing in six months.
- Analysts still warned that leverage, short liquidations, negative funding rates, and weak on-chain demand could leave the rally vulnerable without stronger spot buying.
Bitcoin ETFs extended their strongest inflow run since September, but the market’s mood is more conflicted than the headline suggests. The rise in fund demand looks impressive, yet it is arriving alongside signs that spot conviction has not fully returned. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs logged a ninth straight day of inflows on April 24, adding $14.45 million and lifting the streak’s total to about $2.1 billion. That marks the longest uninterrupted run since September 2025 and strengthens the view that institutional appetite has become steadier even while broader market signals remain uneven.
Weekly flow data reinforces that impression, while also complicating it. Institutional demand is clearly showing up, but the character of that demand still leaves room for doubt. For the week ending April 24, spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted $823.7 million after consecutive weeks of $996.4 million and $786.3 million, extending a three-week run of strong allocations. BlackRock’s IBIT led with $983 million in weekly inflows, its best week in six months. On the surface, that looks like momentum. Underneath, however, the structure of the rally is drawing more cautious readings from market analysts.
Strong ETF Demand Is Not Silencing Market Warnings
On-chain and derivatives data are now pushing back against the optimism. The key concern is that Bitcoin’s advance appears to be driven more by leverage than by broad spot accumulation. Ki Young Ju argued that on-chain apparent demand remains net negative even as ETFs absorb supply and Strategy continues buying. Illia Otychenko added that open interest has risen alongside price, a pattern consistent with short-covering pressure rather than a spot-led expansion. Since April 13, short liquidations have totaled $2.8 billion, compared with $1.8 billion in long liquidations, showing bearish positions were caught offside.
That imbalance leaves the market in an awkward position. Bitcoin is being supported by institutional inflows, but not all of that money should be read as bullish conviction. Part of the recent ETF demand may reflect cash-and-carry trades, where institutions buy ETF shares while shorting CME futures to capture the spread. Options markets are flashing caution, with 25-delta skew staying negative and funding rates near historical lows. Bitcoin was trading around $77,800 on April 27, up 3.5% on the week, but the next leg may depend on whether spot demand fully catches up.
