Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States have achieved a significant milestone, surpassing the previous record for trading volumes by more than one and a half times. On February 28th, the ten ETFs collectively garnered $7.69 billion in trading volume, as reported by Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart on X. This figure eclipsed the previous record of $4.66 billion, which was set on the launch day of the funds on January 11th.
Among the ETFs, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) claimed the largest share, accounting for 43.5% of the total trading volume. It reached $3.35 billion in trading volume, doubling its previous daily record. Notably, this volume alone exceeded the combined trading volume of all ten ETFs on February 27th. The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) came in second place, with a trading volume of $1.86 billion, followed by the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) with $1.44 billion. The combined volumes of GBTC and FBTC constituted approximately 43% of the total volume.
Remarkably, the nine new ETFs, with the exception of Grayscale’s, surpassed their previous record within half a trading day, as noted by Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas in a post on X. By the end of the trading day, they had doubled their volume record, reaching approximately $5.8 billion in trading volume. Balchunas further revealed that the total number of trades between these ETFs exceeded half a million, highlighting the substantial activity.
In a surprising turn of events, Balchunas clarified that the volume was predominantly driven by natural demand, rather than algorithmic or arbitrage trading volume, as previously speculated. This disclosure came from market makers who informed him about the nature of the trading volume.
The record-breaking volume day coincided with Bitcoin’s impressive rally of over 10%, propelling its price to a two-year high of $64,000. Although it retraced slightly to as low as $60,000, it managed to recover and was trading above $62,000 at the time of publication, according to Cointelegraph Markets Pro.
In contrast to the surge in trading volume, GBTC experienced significant net outflows of $216.4 million on February 28th, according to preliminary data from Farside Investors. This marked the highest outflow day for the fund since January 30th, surpassing all previous outflow records for February.
As the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve, individuals like the Wolf Of All Streets express concerns about a future where Bitcoin reaches a staggering price of $1 million.