Crypto ETPs See Easing Sell Pressure After Three Weeks of Losses

After three weeks of heavy selling, outflows on crypto products are clearly calming down, a signal often more telling than the price. They fall to $187M for the week, versus $3.43B in the previous two, which clearly changes the mood. At the same time, the price decline slows and bitcoin briefly touched $60,000, a level that shifts from a panic reflex to a more rational reading.

A slowdown in outflows: true signal or just a pause?

The real issue is not that there are still outflows, but their pace. James Butterfill (CoinShares) recalls that changes in withdrawal speed can signal sentiment turning points: when pressure falls, the market often stops moving in only one direction.

Put differently: crypto hasn’t necessarily found its price floor despite a general return to accumulation, but it could have found a fatigue floor on the selling side. It’s subtle but crucial. A market doesn’t resume because it “is right,” it often resumes because it no longer has enough energy to fall.

The nuance is that a slowdown doesn’t erase the record: CoinShares still cites a third consecutive week of outflows and a year that starts with negative flows. This is not a “bull run,” it is a market that stops struggling.

Bitcoin isolated, XRP attracting: the rotation that tells a story

Another curious detail: Bitcoin is the asset absorbing most of the withdrawals on the ETP side, with $264.4 million in outflows for the week. This figure is significant because it shows that the “decompression” of outflows doesn’t mean everyone is coming back to BTC. On the contrary, the core of the market remains under tension.

What strikes is the contrast: while overall flows calm down, bitcoin continues to absorb the majority of the selling pressure. In short, crypto is not sold “in general” the same way; first sold is what is largest, most liquid, easiest to arbitrage. And in institutional portfolios, bitcoin often serves as the adjustment variable.

On the other hand, XRP attracts $63 million in inflows. Ether and Solana also post modest positive figures (+$5.3M and +$8.2M). This resembles a cautious rotation: some investors are not “returning” to crypto, they’re changing crypto. The detail completing the picture: spot Bitcoin ETFs weigh heavily in outflows, with $318 million in net negative flows for the week, according to SoSoValue. In other words, the institutional faucet linked to ETFs remains capricious, even if the panic slows.