Traditional finance institutions significantly increased their cryptocurrency exposure at the start of 2026, with spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recording their largest daily inflows in weeks on January 2. According to data from Farside Investors, Bitcoin ETFs attracted a substantial $471.3 million in net inflows, while Ethereum ETFs pulled in $174.5 million. This marks the largest single-day inflow for Bitcoin ETFs since November 11 and the largest for Ethereum ETFs since December 9, signaling a clear shift in institutional investor behavior.
The $174.5 million inflow into Ethereum spot ETFs represents a sharp reversal from the outflow-heavy trading that characterized most of late December. This total is the largest single-day Ethereum ETF inflow since mid-December. Notably, Grayscale-led products accounted for more than $100 million of the day's Ethereum inflows, indicating a shift after weeks of consistent redemptions from its ETHE product. The synchronized inflow across multiple issuers, especially from heavyweight providers, is seen as reflecting institutional allocation decisions rather than retail speculation.
The context for this resurgence follows a volatile second half of December for Ethereum ETFs, which experienced repeated daily outflows, thin holiday liquidity, portfolio rebalancing ahead of year-end, and heightened macro uncertainty. These conditions culminated in several heavy outflow days, including sessions where net redemptions exceeded $90 million. The January 2 reversal suggests this selling pressure was more seasonal than structural.
For Bitcoin, the nearly half-billion dollar inflow comes after weeks of net outflows at the end of 2025, during which Bitcoin ETFs had recorded cumulative withdrawals of over $4.5 billion. This sudden reversal highlights renewed confidence in Bitcoin both as a macroeconomic hedge and a long-term asset.
Analysts note that these inflows reinforce the narrative that January 2026 is starting with fresh institutional positioning. Sustained ETF inflows tend to reduce circulating supply and absorb selling pressure, which can support price stability and bullish momentum over time. The data suggests institutions are treating cryptocurrencies increasingly as an independent asset class, allocating capital based on sector-specific fundamentals like supply dynamics, monetary policy hedging, and long-term adoption trends, rather than as a mere proxy for traditional equities.
