Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other crypto exchange-traded products have now lost a total of $4.75 billion in four weeks, according to a new report from CoinShares. The category ended last week having seen $876 million exit the funds.
The razor thin silver lining: It’s a marked improvement compared to the last week of February, when crypto funds saw a $2.9 billion outflow.
“Although this indicates a slowdown in the pace of outflows, investor sentiment remains bearish,” wrote James Butterfill, CoinShares head of research.
It likely comes as no surprise that U.S. investors were most bearish, withdrawing $922 million from crypto funds, he wrote. President Donald Trump continues to wage a trade war with some of the country’s largest trading partners, like Canada, Mexico, and China.
The president also last week delivered on his promise to create a national Bitcoin reserve and crypto stockpile—but in a way that seems to have left many traders disappointed.
Both macro factors have played havoc with crypto markets.
At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price has plunged below $83,000 after having fallen 3.5% compared to this time yesterday, according to CoinGecko data. And the Ethereum price isn’t faring much better. It’s dropped 2.1% in the past day and is currently changing hands for just above $2,100.
Things aren’t looking quite as dire for traditional markets.
During pre-market trading, both the S&P 500 Index and Dow Jones Industrial Average have gained 0.5% compared to their Friday close.
Valentin Fournier, an analyst at BRN, said the prolonged outflows are a sign of declining institutional confidence in the asset class.
“Over the past month, ETF outflows have led to a 10% decrease in total cumulative inflows, highlighting both investor doubt and the likelihood that many have already reached their desired crypto allocations,” he wrote in a Monday trading note.
Fournier added that it was bound to be a rough weekend for crypto prices given the Friday U.S. jobs report. Unemployment ticked up to 4.1%, meaning that the Federal Reserve will now find itself in the difficult position of prioritizing economic growth or controlled inflation, he said.
The Fed’s Open Markets Committee will next announce its inflation decision on next week, on March 19. At the time of writing, investors think there’s about a 3% chance that the FOMC will lower rates, according to CME FedWatch Tool.