Crypto ETF: a week of net swings and regulatory approvals

Last week left a noticeable mark on the spot crypto fund market. In the US, spot Bitcoin ETFs lost $497 million, while Ethereum ETFs showed an even worse picture with outflows of $643 million. Despite this, the total assets under management of Bitcoin ETFs held steady at $114.87 billion.

US Market: Mixed Signals

Over four trading days, US Bitcoin ETFs experienced capital outflows. However, not all funds showed the same trends — BITB, IBIT, and ARKB recorded inflows of $115 million, $106 million, and $100 million respectively, indicating selective investor demand.

Ethereum ETFs faced more intense pressure. Over three days, despite some days of inflow, the overall balance resulted in outflows of $643 million. BlackRock ETHA led in outflow volume, although the company’s trust fund maintains a long-term strategy. The total value of Ethereum ETFs surpassed $18.21 billion, demonstrating a high level of capital concentration.

Asian Development Vector

Hong Kong spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced outflows of 8.98 Bitcoin with assets totaling $336 million. Harvest Bitcoin held 291.25 Bitcoin, while ChinaAMC reached 2,410 Bitcoin. Ethereum ETFs in the region saw no inflows, maintaining a capitalization of $95.61 million.

Options Market Demonstrates Resilience

As of December 19, the nominal trading volume of Bitcoin ETF options reached $987 million with a long/short ratio of 1.37. Open positions on December 18 amounted to $32.51 billion with a ratio of 1.85, signaling continued bullish sentiment. However, trading activity decreased, and volatility remained at 47.28%.

Regulatory Activity Gains Momentum

New ETF Products on the Horizon

VanEck filed an updated application for a spot AVAX ETF with the ticker VAVX, expanding its altcoin fund portfolio. Bitwise Asset Management officially registered a Sui ETF application via Form S-1, containing over 20 documents. The Bitwise trust fund established offices in San Francisco with a legal address in Delaware.

Canary Capital submitted an updated application for an INJ staking ETF through the SEC. U.S. Bancorp Fund Services and BitGo Trust Company will provide custodial services.

Listing Breakthroughs

NYSE published its annual summary for 2025: 25 new digital asset ETFs have been listed, including Bitwise Solana Staking ETF and Franklin XRP ETF. The listing graph confirmed NYSE as the leading platform for crypto ETFs in the US.

Bitwise just submitted updated documents for the Hyperliquid ETF with a 0.67% fee and the ticker BHYP, which traditionally precedes an official listing.

Asian Successes

Hong Kong SFC confirmed that the total market capitalization of spot virtual asset ETFs in Q3 reached $920 million — a 217% increase since launch. Five tokenized money market funds hold HKD 5.387 billion (692 million, which is 391% more than the previous quarter. The SFC expanded exemption from stamp duty to tokenized ETFs, promoting secondary trading development.

Analytical Assessments and Outlook

Bullish Forecast for 2026

Matt Hugan, Chief Investment Officer of Bitwise, considers the development trajectory “extremely optimistic.” Major brokers are entering the market, and record capital inflows are expected in 2026. The recent dip was caused by expectations of a four-year cycle and technical corrections, which will dissipate as institutionalization progresses.

Concentration Risks

Experts forecast the launch of over 100 crypto ETFs in 2026. However, James Seifart from Bloomberg warns: Coinbase controls 85% of the assets of global Bitcoin ETFs, creating a single point of failure risk. Authorized participants depend heavily on a few pricing platforms, and altcoins remain a complex hedge due to insufficient derivatives depth.

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and major coins will strengthen their dominance. Expensive, homogeneous products with assets under $50 million will face the first wave of liquidations at the end of 2026 — early 2027.

Mining Paradox

Matt Hugan also noted that Bitcoin ETFs with a capitalization of $15 billion may soon buy more Bitcoin than is mined annually, signaling a radical reconfiguration of demand in the market.