Key Notes
- Bloomberg’s Eric Balchunas said spot Bitcoin ETF outflows are much lower than gold ETF outflows, when GLD price crashed in the past.
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs are currently underwater, with an average cost basis near $84,099.
- Since October, the total outflows of roughly $7 billion remain small compared with the $63 billion in peak inflows.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs in the US have seen major outflows throughout January 2026. Despite this, the overall drop in BTC held by these ETFs is just 6.6% since October 2025. During the same period, BTC
BTC
$67 364
24h volatility:
9.0%
Market cap:
$1.35 T
Vol. 24h:
$111.75 B
price crashed by 44%, showing that investors are holding with diamond hands.
Bitcoin ETF Holders Show Strength
The major outflows coming from spot Bitcoin ETFs have stirred up market sentiment. Extreme fear has taken hold across the crypto market, but ETF data suggests institutional holders are largely staying put.
Market enthusiast Shaun Edmonson has shared an interesting statistic. He noted that US spot Bitcoin ETFs held approximately 1,362,293 BTC as of Oct. 10, 2025. Since then, Bitcoin’s price has fallen about 44%. Despite the sharp drawdown, ETF holdings have declined by only 6.6%, indicating limited selling from these vehicles.
Extreme fear is spreading. Here are some solid facts 👇.
US ETFs held 1,362,293 BTC at 10/10/25. The price is down 44% but the holdings are only down 6.6%. These guys are serious hodlers@EricBalchunas @JSeyff @jameslavish @CarlBMenger @NeilJacobs @seth_fin… pic.twitter.com/Gy7PuB4zu2— Shaun Edmondson (@EdmondsonShaun) February 5, 2026
The drop in ETF Bitcoin balances is relatively very small in comparison to the BTC price drop. This suggests that institutional investors are maintaining long-term positions rather than capitulating during the downturn.
Eric Balchunas, the senior ETF analyst for Bloomberg has validated this. Furthermore, he shared a historical context by comparing the Bitcoin ETF outflows with gold ETF outflows.
Fun fact: $GLD fell on hard times a couple times in its 22yr life as an ETF. At one point it dropped 40% in 6mo and 33% of the assets left in outflows (since then it’s taken in like $30b in new cash). This is why I like to point that a) 6-7% of aum leaving is actually quite…
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) February 5, 2026
Balchunas wrote that the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) have faced several difficult periods during their history of the past 22 years. At one stage, the gold ETF fell about 40% within six months, while roughly 33% of its assets exited through outflows. Despite that, GLD has since attracted nearly $30 billion in new inflows.
Thus, he pointed out that with only 6-7% of assets leaving Bitcoin ETFs, despite this massive BTC price crash, it shows major strength.
BTC Crash Tests Resolve of ETFs
According to Galaxy Research data, the average cost basis of spot Bitcoin ETF holders is $84,099. With BTC price falling under $70,000 at press time, the ETFs are deep underwater.
Bitcoin ETF outflows average cost basis | Source: Galaxy Research
Another Bloomberg ETF analyst, James Seyffart, said Bitcoin ETFs have shown resilience despite recent market weakness.
In a post on X, Seyffart noted that spot Bitcoin ETFs have recorded more than $7 billion in outflows since Oct. 10, 2025, when market conditions began to deteriorate. However, he added that the pullback remains relatively modest when viewed against the roughly $63 billion in inflows the funds attracted at their peak.
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Bhushan is a FinTech enthusiast and holds a good flair in understanding financial markets. His interest in economics and finance draw his attention towards the new emerging Blockchain Technology and Cryptocurrency markets. He is continuously in a learning process and keeps himself motivated by sharing his acquired knowledge. In free time he reads thriller fictions novels and sometimes explore his culinary skills.