Bitcoin (BTC) worth almost $10 billion has been withdrawn from crypto exchanges since the introduction of spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States. According to data from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode, exchanges have seen a decrease of over 136,000 BTC since January 11. The trend of BTC withdrawals from exchanges continues, indicating that investors are not taking profits. This quarter, around $9.5 billion worth of BTC has been withdrawn from major trading platforms due to the introduction of US spot Bitcoin ETFs. Coinbase, one of the exchanges tracked by Glassnode, currently holds the lowest balance of BTC since April 2018, with a combined total of 2,320,458 BTC as of March 28. On March 27 alone, withdrawals from exchanges amounted to over 22,000 BTC ($1.54 billion), which is the third-largest daily withdrawal in 2024. In addition, there has been a significant inbound transfer of stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) to Coinbase, marking the largest such transfer in history. This has led market observers to speculate about the impact of ETFs on the available supply of BTC and its price. It is predicted that within the next six to twelve months, there will be a major squeeze in supply, with demand surpassing the available BTC for sale. The buying force created by ETFs is already much larger than the daily supply of new BTC unlocked by miners. After the upcoming block subsidy halving event in mid-April, the ratio will increase even more, as the BTC supply expands at a slower rate. Charles Edwards, the founder of Capriole Investments, highlighted the significance of the upcoming halving event in his latest market commentary. It is important to note that this article does not provide investment advice or recommendations, and readers are advised to conduct their own research before making any investment or trading decisions.
Bitcoin exchanges' BTC holdings have witnessed a staggering decline of nearly $10 billion in 2024.