Fresh buying in US spot funds has put the Bitcoin ETF market back in focus for both institutional and retail investors.
Summary
BlackRock IBIT posts strongest day since March
On Thursday, investors poured $269.3 million into BlackRock‘s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), marking its best single day since early March, around the time the US-Iran war began to intensify. Moreover, the renewed demand arrived after a brief lull in activity across the sector.
The strong haul from IBIT helped reverse two straight days of net outflows across the 12 US spot Bitcoin ETFs. Collectively, the group recorded a net inflow of $358.1 million for the session, signaling robust appetite for regulated crypto exposure despite recent volatility.
Bitcoin ETF flows are widely tracked as a proxy for both retail and institutional demand for Bitcoin. However, they are only one piece of a broader picture that also includes derivatives markets, on-chain data and exchange order books.
Fidelity and Morgan Stanley products follow BlackRock higher
The Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) was the second-largest winner on Thursday, pulling in $53.3 million in new capital. That said, the new Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust (MSBT) ranked next, attracting $14.9 million on just its second trading day, according to Farside Investors data.
Other issuers also saw positive flows. The Bitwise product and the ARK 21Shares fund added $11.7 million and $4.8 million, respectively. Meanwhile, Franklin Templeton and VanEck‘s Bitcoin offerings each drew roughly $2 million, underscoring broad-based buying across multiple providers.
Flow figures for US spot products since March 23, as compiled by Farside Investors, show a marked pickup in demand following a period of choppy trading. Moreover, the dispersion of inflows suggests investors are not relying on a single issuer, but are diversifying exposure across several funds.
IBIT resilience amid crypto market pullback
Despite recent volatility, IBIT has now accumulated $1.5 billion in net inflows so far this year. This resilience has come during a broader crypto market pullback, in which the price of Bitcoin has fallen from a 2026 high of $97,000 to about $72,100 at the time of writing.
In March, BlackRock’s head of digital assets said investors in IBIT had proven to be “disproportionately long-term buy and hold” participants. Moreover, she noted that this patience has persisted even during periods of heavy selling pressure in other parts of the Bitcoin ecosystem.
That long-horizon profile helps explain why, during stretches of sharp price swings, IBIT inflows have often remained steady. However, sustained demand will still depend on macro conditions, regulatory developments and the trajectory of Bitcoin’s spot price over the rest of the year.
Morgan Stanley eyes broader digital asset product suite
Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley‘s head of digital assets told Bloomberg on Thursday that MSBT was the institutional bank’s best-performing ETF launch ever. The strong debut underscores growing interest from wealth management clients in regulated Bitcoin exposure.
“This is just the first of a long roadmap of new products on the asset management side,” she said, hinting at an expanded push into crypto-linked strategies. Moreover, Morgan Stanley’s early success could spur rival banks to accelerate their own digital asset offerings.
The bank has already filed to list a staked Ether ETF as well as a Solana ETF. However, both products still require regulatory approval, and the pace of any rollout will likely depend on how comfortable authorities become with staking and newer layer-1 tokens.
US spot Bitcoin ETFs approach year-to-date breakeven
With Thursday’s strong session, the broader complex of US spot Bitcoin ETFs is now close to flipping back to a year-to-date net inflow. The recent data shows that investors continue to use these vehicles actively, even after sharp price movements in the underlying asset.
The group finished 2025 with $56.59 billion in net inflows and currently sits at $56.51 billion, leaving them just $80 million shy of regaining their starting-year level. Moreover, another couple of strong inflow days like Thursday could easily push the complex into fresh year-to-date positive territory.
That said, analysts caution that flow momentum can reverse quickly if macro risks escalate or if Bitcoin’s price comes under renewed pressure. Still, the latest data points to resilient bitcoin etf net inflows across major issuers, even after a sizable drawdown in the underlying market.
In summary, the latest surge in BlackRock IBIT inflows, coupled with growing interest in Morgan Stanley MSBT and other issuers, highlights how regulated funds are increasingly central to Bitcoin exposure. However, whether this trend persists will depend on market conditions, regulatory signals and investor risk appetite over the coming months.
