Bitcoin Price Drops Below $64K After $900M ETF Outflows in Americas

Bitcoin experienced a significant drop during the European morning, falling to its lowest point in over a month at $63,500. This marks the first time since mid-May that Bitcoin has dipped below the $64,000 threshold. As of the latest update, the price of Bitcoin stands around $63,900, reflecting a 3.5% decline over the past 24 hours. The broader digital asset market, as measured by the CoinDesk 20 Index (CD20), has also seen a decrease of just under 2.3%. Additionally, Ethereum (ETH) is down by 2.25% at $3,500, while Solana (SOL) has experienced a drop of nearly 3.8% to $132.24.

In the United States, spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have witnessed a fifth consecutive day of outflows, resulting in total losses amounting to $900 million for the week. Data compiled by SoSoValue reveals that the 11 listed ETFs recorded a loss of $140 million on Thursday, with total trading volumes reaching $1.1 billion. Notably, Grayscale’s GBTC, which transitioned to an ETF in January, led the outflows with $53 million, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC at $51 million. In contrast, BlackRock’s IBIT, the largest ETF in terms of assets held, experienced net inflows of $1 million, while the remaining products saw no net change.

Standard Chartered, a prominent financial institution, is reportedly launching a spot trading desk for Bitcoin and Ethereum, according to Bloomberg’s recent report. The trading desk, based in London, is set to commence operations shortly and will be integrated into the bank’s FX trading unit. This move positions Standard Chartered as one of the initial global banks to venture into spot cryptocurrency trading. While other institutions like Goldman Sachs have been involved in crypto derivatives trading for an extended period, Standard Chartered has solidified its presence in the cryptocurrency space by supporting digital asset custodian Zodia Custody and its exchange arm, Zodia Markets.

A chart depicting the business cycle stages of the U.S. and other developed and major emerging economies indicates that they are currently in a late expansion phase and have not yet entered a recession. Consequently, some analysts anticipate a potential upward movement in Bitcoin before the business cycle transitions into a recession, leading to widespread risk aversion. This insight underscores the dynamic relationship between economic cycles and the cryptocurrency market, offering valuable perspectives for investors navigating these volatile landscapes.

The article was edited by Sheldon Reback.