Spot bitcoin ETFs pull in $987 million last week as institutional demand recovers

U.S. spot bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds reported $986.9 million in net inflows last week, extending their positive flows to three straight weeks amid renewed institutional demand. 

According to SoSoValue data, last week's net inflows rose from $924.5 million the prior week. BlackRock's IBIT led the funds with $691.5 million in net inflows for the week ended Sept. 4.

The trading volume for the funds totaled $14.5 billion last week, down from nearly $19 billion the week before.

Meanwhile, spot ether (ETH) ETFs recorded $ $218.4 million in net inflows last week, also marking their third consecutive week of positive flows. Their weekly trading volume amounted to $4.1 billion, down from $6.3 billion the previous week.

The latest inflows followed a strong August for both sets of ETFs. Spot bitcoin ETFs drew in $3.52 billion in monthly net inflows, their largest monthly positive flows since September 2025. Spot ether ETFs brought in $1.85 billion last month, which marked their strongest month since August 2025.

"Sustained ETF inflows suggest institutional capital is steadily rebuilding exposure to bitcoin, creating genuine spot demand rather than relying on leverage-driven speculation," Dominick John, analyst at Zeus Research, told The Block.

Min Jung, research associate of Presto Research, also said that the crypto market appears to be seeing a "catch-up trade" after lagging other risk assets, with strong ETF inflows "pointing to renewed institutional demand."

Bitcoin continues to hover around $80,000 after reaching a high of around $81,700 last Thursday, according to The Block's BTC price page. The world's largest cryptocurrency showed little change over the past 24 hours, trading at $79,951 as of 9:35 p.m. ET Sunday.

"Holding $80,000 keeps the structure constructive," said John. "BTC will continue grinding higher toward $82,000-$85,000, but the next move will likely be macro-driven," he said, adding that traders are watching Sept. 10 jobless claims and Sept. 11 CPI for signals on Fed policy, yields and liquidity.

"A supportive macro backdrop could extend the rally, while a hotter inflation print would be the key downside risk," said Jung of Presto.