Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have had a volatile start to 2026, with pointed swings in investor demand even as money flowed into conventional ETFs at an extremely swift pace.
U.S.-listed Bitcoin (BTC) spot ETFs earned $753 million on Tuesday for the second straight day of inflows after a four-day losing streak, According to to Farside Investors data.
Bitcoin ETFs have earned a total of $660 million in net inflows so far in 2026 as demand for the funds continues to fluctuate.
On the other hand, conventional ETFs attracted $46 billion in the first six days of 2026, an “abnormally high level to start the year,” according to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas.
“ETFs earned $46 billion in the first 6 days of the year, an unusually high showing for the start of the year, at a rate of $158 billion per month, or about 4 times the norm.” he wrote analyst in Monday’s X post.
The discrepancy shows that ETF investors are actively deploying capital, but prefer to allocate it to funds tied to conventional investments rather than cryptocurrency ETFs with a higher perceived risk profile.
Demand for Bitcoin ETFs has declined over the past six months, from $6 billion in monthly net inflows in July 2025 to $1.09 billion in outflows in December, According to to SoSoValue.
Related: Powell investigation could introduce ‘risk premium’ for Bitcoin: analysts
Looking at other crypto funds, spot Ether (ETH) earned $130 million on Tuesday, reaching $240 million in total inflows so far in 2026, According to for investors from Farside.
Spot Solana ETFs (SOL) continued their unbroken streak, reporting positive net inflows of $67 million year-to-date.
Related: Standard Chartered Said It Plans Crypto Trading Brokerage, Lowers ETH Forecast
Bitcoin treasury companies are stepping in to fill the demand gap
While the lack of demand for ETFs is a worrying sign for Bitcoin’s price, blockchain data suggests Bitcoin treasury firms are stepping in to fill the gap through steady monthly accumulation.
Corporate digital asset treasuries (DATs) have added a net 260,000 bitcoins to their balance sheets over the past six months, surpassing the estimated 82,000 coins mined during the same period.
According to the analytics platform, this equates to monthly corporate investments of approximately 260,000 BTC worth approximately $25 billion Glass knot.
Unlike the state-owned companies, the industry’s top investors in terms of earnings, known as “smart money”, continued to bet on Bitcoin’s decline with a net low position of $122 million. According to to the Nansen crypto intelligence platform.
However, the cohort was net low and was betting on most top cryptocurrencies to decline, with the exception of Ether, XRP (XRP), Pump.fun’s token (PUMP), and Zcash (ZEC).
Warehouse: If the cryptocurrency bull run is coming to an end… it’s time to buy the Ferrari – Crypto Kid
