Bitcoin ETFs post $228 million in weekly outflows as October losses near $618 million

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs posted $228.6 million in net weekly outflows for the week ending October 16, 2026, driving cumulative October losses to over $615 million. Higher-than-expected inflation reports stoked Federal Reserve interest rate fears, briefly pushing Bitcoin below $80,000 and triggering $950 million in leveraged position liquidations. BlackRock's IBIT led fund exits, though total ETF assets remain over $100 billion.

Weekly spot Bitcoin ETF outflows

• ▪U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $228.6 million in net weekly outflows for the trading week ending October 16, 2026, following a $681.1 million net drain the prior week
• ▪BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust led weekly fund exits with approximately $165 million in outflows during the week ending October 16, 2026, including $71.8 million on October 16, 2026
• ▪U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF outflows exceeded inflows on three of five trading days during the week ending October 16, 2026, culminating in an $82.4 million net exit on October 16, 2026
• ▪Fidelity's Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund recorded $10.6 million in net outflows on October 16, 2026

October Bitcoin ETF outflow trends

• ▪Single-day outflows for U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs peaked on October 7, 2026, reaching $484.9 million to $487.1 million in net redemptions
• ▪U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs tracked by Decrypt accumulated roughly $615 million to $618 million in net outflows for October 2026, despite opening the month with $293 million in net inflows

Inflation data and interest rate expectations

• ▪A higher-than-expected U.S. producer price index report on October 15, 2026, intensified market expectations of additional Federal Reserve interest rate increases
• ▪Nexo analyst Iliya Kalchev stated that Federal Reserve rate increases elevate Treasury yields to around 5%, creating high-yield competition for riskier assets like Bitcoin
• ▪The September 2026 U.S. consumer price index rose 3.7% year-over-year, exceeding the 3.6% forecast and triggering $261.4 million in U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF redemptions on October 14, 2026
• ▪Higher interest rates elevate borrowing costs and strengthen the U.S. dollar, restricting the cheap credit utilized by leveraged cryptocurrency traders

Bitcoin price declines and liquidations

• ▪Bitcoin's price decline on October 15, 2026, pushed the asset below the estimated average U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF holder cost basis of $82,300, according to Nexo analyst Iliya Kalchev
• ▪Approximately $950 million in leveraged crypto positions were liquidated over a 24-hour period ending October 15, 2026, with bullish long positions accounting for roughly 90% of the total, according to CoinGlass
• ▪Bitcoin's price temporarily dropped below $80,000 on October 15, 2026, and closed on October 16, 2026, near $81,590

Total Bitcoin ETF assets and volume

• ▪U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs held approximately 1.276 million BTC worth $100.2 billion to $104.29 billion in total assets under management as of mid-October 2026
• ▪U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have attracted $56.88 billion to $57.3 billion in cumulative net inflows since launching in January 2024
• ▪Daily trading volume across U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs consistently exceeded $2 billion on multiple trading sessions during October 2026