Bitcoin ETFs Lose Over a Billion as XRP Draws Interest
Institutional pressure on Bitcoin is intensifying, while part of the capital continues to rotate into altcoins despite rising geopolitical tensions and cautious market sentiment.
Summary:
- Crypto investment products recorded another week of outflows.
- BlackRock accounted for the majority of the exiting capital.
- Bitcoin suffered the heaviest selling pressure.
- Some altcoins continued attracting fresh inflows.
CoinShares’ weekly report for the period ending May 22, 2026, shows that crypto investment products saw $1.47 billion withdrawn in just one week. This marks the second consecutive week of negative flows and the third-largest weekly outflow of 2026 after the two periods at the end of January, when the market lost around $1.7 billion per week. Over the past two weeks, total outflows have reached $2.54 billion.
According to CoinShares, the main reason remains the growing risk-off sentiment caused by tensions surrounding Iran. Despite progress regarding the Clarity Act regulatory framework, geopolitical pressure continues to have a stronger impact on market sentiment for now.
BlackRock Accounts for the Majority of Outflows
The largest outflow came from iShares, BlackRock’s ETF division. The company’s products alone accounted for $1.191 billion of the total $1.467 billion in weekly outflows. This means that approximately 81% of all exiting capital came from a single source.
After BlackRock came Fidelity Investments with $129 million in outflows, ARK Invest and 21Shares with $107 million, ProFunds Group with $45 million, and Grayscale Investments with $12 million.
At the same time, Bitwise and 21Shares AG attracted around $1 million in fresh capital, though these figures remain too small compared to the scale of the outflows.
BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF manages approximately $69.39 billion in assets and remains the largest spot Bitcoin ETF on the market.
READ MORE: Strategy Cuts Debt While Strive Expands Bitcoin Treasury Holdings
This is precisely why, when U.S. institutional investors begin rapidly reducing risk exposure, they use the most liquid instrument available.
Bitcoin Took the Biggest Hit
Bitcoin recorded $1.315 billion in weekly outflows – the largest single-week outflow for BTC ETFs in all of 2026, surpassing even the levels seen at the end of January.
At the same time, Ethereum managed to attract approximately $222.8 million in fresh capital. Bitcoin short products also attracted around $10.2 million.
The situation among altcoins looks completely different.
XRP attracted $31.8 million in new inflows, Near drew $9 million, Solana $7.7 million, Sui $2.9 million, and Chainlink around $0.6 million. Multi-asset products also added another $4.7 million.
Nearly All the Pressure Comes From the U.S.
The geographical data in the report shows an even clearer concentration of selling pressure.
The United States accounted for approximately $1.425 billion of the total weekly outflows — about 97% of the entire movement. Outside the U.S. market, pressure remained significantly more limited.
Switzerland recorded around $16.2 million in outflows, Canada $12.5 million, and Hong Kong $12.2 million. Germany remained almost unchanged for the week.
Sweden stands out as the only major country with negative flows since the beginning of 2026. The data shows net outflows of around $164.9 million, meaning Swedish investors have been selling throughout the year so far.
Pressure on Yearly Flows Begins to Intensify
The data also shows a sharp contraction in Bitcoin’s yearly inflows.
In just one week, BTC net inflows for 2026 fell from $3.9 billion to $2.6 billion. This means that roughly one-third of the capital attracted this year was erased within a single reporting period.
Total crypto flows for 2026 still remain positive at around $3.41 billion, but the pace of contraction is beginning to accelerate sharply.
Ethereum has already moved into negative territory with approximately -$89 million in net flows for the year, while multi-asset products stand at -$111 million. Bitcoin remains positive at around $2.624 billion, but the speed of the decline is beginning to raise questions about optimism surrounding institutional flows in 2026.
The information presented in this article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial, investment, or trading advice. Coinspress.com does not promote or advocate for any particular investment strategy, asset, or cryptocurrency project. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile and unpredictable – always perform your own research and seek guidance from a qualified financial professional before making any investment decisions.
Kosta Gushterov
Reporter at CoinsPress
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP. Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem. To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem. His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his work.
