US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds ended the week of 19–24 October 2026 with approximately $301.2 million in net inflows, reversing two consecutive weeks of withdrawals. The result was volatile: funds gathered about $1.07 billion across Monday through Wednesday, then surrendered roughly $773.5 million on Thursday and Friday. Thursday alone saw $635.6 million in outflows, the largest single-day Bitcoin ETF redemption since June 25, according to SoSoValue.
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust kept the weekly total positive. It pulled in $565.7 million over five sessions, including about $665.2 million on Monday, while the rest of the Bitcoin ETF group collectively lost approximately $264.5 million. Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund and ARK 21Shares also recorded heavy Thursday redemptions. Bitcoin itself traded near the low $80,000 range, briefly approaching $85,000 before retreating.
Ether funds moved the opposite way. Ethereum spot ETFs posted about $220.7 million in weekly net withdrawals, extending their outflow streak to four consecutive weeks. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust accounted for $233.2 million of redemptions. Wednesday and Friday brought small inflows, but they were not enough to offset Monday and Thursday selling.
Alternative crypto ETFs diverged sharply. XRP spot ETFs attracted $3.55 million on Thursday, making XRP the only major category among Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and XRP to record positive flows that session. Solana ETFs lost about $8.51 million on the day and roughly $17.6 million for the week, according to Farside data.
Beyond ETF flows, BlackRock filed for an iShares Bitcoin Managed Protection ETF, an options-based fund designed to cushion some Bitcoin losses while capping gains. JPMorgan launched its JPM Coin deposit token on Ethereum, expanding institutional payment and settlement use beyond Base. HSBC introduced RedCoin, a regulated Hong Kong dollar stablecoin for retail payments, with gradual access through the PayMe platform and more than 100,000 merchants.
Solana completed its Alpenglow consensus upgrade on 21 October, with developer Anza saying transaction finality could fall from about 12.8 seconds to 150 milliseconds. Ethereum delayed its Glamsterdam testnet activation on Hoodi over gas-rule concerns; the Ethereum Foundation said live network operations were not affected. The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency finalized GENIUS Act rules for stablecoin reserves, redemptions and custody, effective 18 January 2027. In Ireland, the Central Bank announced a €3.25 million penalty against Coinbase Ireland for past customer-fund-safeguarding and outsourcing failures.
Reuters also reported that 22 listed companies, including Microsoft and Alphabet, have objected to a proposed OKX–Intercontinental Exchange platform for tokenised share trading. Looking ahead, the Federal Reserve’s 27–28 October policy meeting is the next major macro test. The key question is whether Bitcoin ETF demand can broaden beyond BlackRock while Ethereum outflows stabilize.
