Sustained US Bitcoin ETF inflows are supporting prices near $97,000, raising questions about whether institutional demand is reshaping Bitcoin’s market cycle.
Bitcoin’s price climbed back above $97,000 this week, supported by a sustained return of capital into US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, data and market watchers say, suggesting a structural shift in demand after months of sideways trading.
Since the start of the year, US spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs have collectively attracted nearly $1.5 billion in net inflows, according to data cited by Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. That total reflects a multi-day stretch of positive creation activity amid renewed interest from larger allocators, following a period of muted ETF flows at the end of 2025.
Balchunas said in a post on X that the pattern of ETF demand “suggests that maybe the buyers have exhausted the sellers,” a reference to Bitcoin breaking out of a prolonged consolidation around the $88,000 level.
