Bitcoin’s price may have fallen from last year’s highs, but that’s not stopping a slew of ETFs from courting investors in hopes that the king of crypto will rebound this year.
Regulatory tailwinds, such as the SEC’s recent passage of generic listings standards (GLS) and the upcoming The Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act, are also expected to boost investor interest in these funds, which raised a whopping $47.2 billion last year, despite $5 billion of withdrawals in the fourth quarter.
Traditional finance (TradFi) remains bullish on digital currencies and many institutions are set to enter the space in coming months, potentially helping ETF inflows to more than double in 2026, analysts say.
“We will absolutely see more inflows this year,” said Chris Matta, CEO of consultancy Cryptocollective.io, adding that he expects 25 to 50 new such funds to launch this year. “Though BTC went from roughly $120,000 to $90,000 last year, you still had a huge amount of inflows.”
Institutions such as banks and asset managers have warmed up to digital currencies amid Washington’s policy changes and GLS’s roll out. The provisions have been a boon to the $3.3 trillion industry, sharply streamlining ETF listings and sparking a second wave of applications featuring popular altcoins such as Doge, Cardano and Polkadot.
This momentum is also being reflected in the derivatives market. In February, CME Group expanded its Crypto derivatives suite with the launch of Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar futures. This comes off the back of a year of records for the exchange’s Crypto product suite, with total notional volume up 75% in 2025 vs 2024.
