Bitcoin Dips to $97k as Institutional Demand Declines

TL;DR

• BTC has lost 6.5% of its value in the last 24 hours and is now trading around $97k.

• The bearish performance comes amid declining institutional demand.

Crypto Market Correction Continues

The cryptocurrency market has been choppy in recent weeks, with Bitcoin failing to rally to a new all-time high in nearly six weeks. The leading cryptocurrency by market cap has now dropped below $98k for the first time since June as institutional demand for Bitcoin-related products continues to decline.

According to SoSoValue, U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds reported $869.9 million in net outflows on Thursday, marking their second-largest outflows on record. The outflow was led by Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust, which lost $318.2 million; BlockRock's IBIT recorded $256.6 million in net outflows, while Fidelity's FBTC saw $119.9 million leave the fund. The report added that Grayscale's GBTC, along with ETFs from Ark and 21Shares, Bitwise, VanEck, Invesco, Valkyrie, and Franklin Templeton, also posted net outflows.

The massive outflow on Thursday was the second-largest since Bitcoin ETFs launched a few months ago. The largest outflows occurred on Feb. 25, 2025, when the funds saw $1.14 billion leave in a single day.

While commenting on the recent price action, Min Jung, research associate of Presto Research, stated that,

"It signals a broad de-risking across markets. Investors are pulling capital from higher-beta assets and rotating into safety, reflecting uncertainty around the Fed's path and deteriorating macro sentiment."

The Federal Reserve is adopting a hawkish approach to the market, with the Fed not expected to cut interest rates in its upcoming FOMC meeting. Bitcoin’s price could record further volatility in the near term, with possible support around the $93k region.