Key Highlights
- U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs experienced $225.2M in net withdrawals on Thursday, breaking a seven-consecutive-day positive flow pattern
- BlackRock’s IBIT accounted for the bulk of exits, with $202.5M withdrawn in just 24 hours
- Bitcoin price momentarily fell beneath the $65,000 threshold, reaching as low as $64,600, amid technical bearish signals
- Market sentiment gauge Crypto Fear & Greed Index plummeted to 28, marking July’s most pessimistic level
- Presidential directive halted U.S. military operations against Iran, yet market volatility persists with Bitcoin hovering near $64,300
American spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds witnessed a dramatic reversal on Thursday, July 24, with $225.2 million flowing out of the products, bringing an end to an impressive seven-trading-day winning streak that had gathered nearly $1 billion in fresh capital.
This marked the first time these investment vehicles turned negative since July 13. However, looking at the broader picture, the ETF category still managed to close the trading week approximately $274 million in the green despite Thursday’s setback.
BlackRock’s flagship IBIT product bore the brunt of the selling pressure, hemorrhaging $202.5 million. Other notable outflows included Fidelity’s FBTC, Bitwise’s BITB, ARK 21Shares’ ARKB, Franklin Templeton’s EZBC, and WisdomTree’s BTCW, though in more modest amounts. Bucking the trend, Morgan Stanley’s MSBT stood alone with positive flows, attracting $5 million in new investments.
Middle East Conflict Weighs on Digital Assets
The substantial ETF redemptions coincided with a broader equity market selloff on Thursday, as escalating military confrontation between the United States and Iranānow entering its fifth monthācontinued to rattle investor confidence. Crude oil benchmarks have remained stubbornly high, intensifying worries about resurgent inflation and prompting market chatter about potential Federal Reserve tightening.
Bitcoin’s value temporarily breached the psychologically important $65,000 mark, bottoming out at $64,600. The cryptocurrency currently trades beneath what technical analysts identify as a death cross formationāa bearish technical indicator occurring when short-term moving averages cross below their long-term counterparts, typically foreshadowing further downside.
The widely-followed Crypto Fear & Greed Index shed three points to settle at 28, representing the month’s most fearful reading and signaling extreme caution among market participants.
Technical analyst Ali Charts identified a critical price zone for traders to monitor. According to his analysis, maintaining $63,800 as a floor could trigger a recovery rally toward $67,000. Should that support level fail, however, the next probable destination sits at $60,000.
All Eyes Turn to Federal Reserve
According to reports, President Trump instructed American armed forces to suspend offensive operations against Iranian targets following 13 straight days of military strikes. The temporary cessation emerged as diplomatic representatives from Oman engaged Iranian officials in Tehran for negotiations regarding the potential reopening of the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.
Nonetheless, the security situation remains precarious. Ongoing Houthi militia activity in the Bab al-Mandab Strait persists in creating bottlenecks for international maritime commerce.
Bitcoin is currently trading in the vicinity of $64,300, registering a marginal gain of under 1% over the past 24 hours.
In contrast to Bitcoin products, Ethereum-focused ETFs demonstrated resilience, accumulating $26.3 million in fresh inflows on Thursday, marking five consecutive sessions of positive movement.
Market participants now turn their attention to the upcoming Federal Reserve policy meeting scheduled for July 28-29. While CME FedWatch tools indicate overwhelming expectations for unchanged interest rates at this gathering, prediction market platform Polymarket suggests a 72% probability of at least one rate increase materializing before year’s end.
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