Despite crypto prices rising, institutions continue to serve at the behest of the bears, according to the latest report from CoinShares.
Bitcoin (BTC) was the most sold digital asset by a wide margin, accounting for 85% of all institutional activity, and marking $45 million worth of outflows. James Butterfill, head of research for CoinShares, considers it the most-loved investment product, as it drew inflows worth $12 million over the past month.
On the other hand, Ethereum (ETH)—fresh off its label as the least-loved digital asset in 2023—continues on a negative streak, reaching $4.8 million in sales by large entities over the past week. Its unfavorable rating is very much intact, clocking $117 million of outflows on the year.
Numbers showcased by Ethereum have baffled Butterfill, who wrote today that despite “attractive investment fundamentals and high demand for its staking yield,” Ethereum continues to be of lesser interest to institutions.
Ethereum Is Losing Favor Among Institutional Investors: CoinShares
Institutions have fallen out of love with Ethereum in 2023, selling upwards of nine digits of the asset in the year to date. According to the latest analysis by CoinShares, the number two cryptocurrency saw $4.8 million in outflows this past week, reaching $108 million in sales this year. That places it as the most sold digital asset by large entities, wrote James Butterfill, head of research for CoinShares. The analyst labeled it the “least loved digital asset” for exchange-traded product (ETP)...
Butterfill told Decrypt that fund flows can sometimes prove to be “a contrarian indicator,” as evidenced by today’s report. Bitcoin is up 6.5% over the past week, trading at $26,793, but is plagued by a decidedly negative sentiment among institutions. The same goes for Ethereum, which has risen 5.4% for the week, but has continued to be discarded by large entities.
The analyst explained that the rising prices and hefty outflows might be an indicator that we are “close to the end of the capitulation phase.”
Large entities offloaded $53 million worth of crypto over the past seven days, which adds up to a whopping $455 million over the last nine weeks. The U.S.—with its less-than-friendly regulatory approach to digital assets—led the way among nations, comprising 77% of the outflows, with $41 million.
Germany and Canada followed from afar, seeing $5.9 million and $4.9 million worth of outflows. All three countries have been decidedly off-crypto during the last thirty days, with double digit red numbers marking their interest.
CoinShares also reported that volumes increased over the past seven days, reaching $1 billion for the week, marking a 42% uptick week-to-week.
