US spot Bitcoin ETFs set to hit $1 trillion cumulative trading volume milestone in less than 18 months since launch

U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds are closing in on $1 trillion in cumulative trading volume less than 18 months after their debut in January 2024.

The spot Bitcoin ETFs grew swiftly following their launch, attracting $100 billion in trading volume by March 2024 and $200 billion by April 2024 as bitcoin rose to reach what was then an all-time high of nearly $74,000. However, the trading volume trajectory then slowed slightly amid a cooling-off phase for the crypto market that saw bitcoin consolidate in a range between $50,000 and $70,000 for the next seven months. Bitcoin finally broke out of that range to reach new all-time highs again following pro-crypto Donald Trump's U.S. presidential election victory in November, with the spot Bitcoin ETFs surpassing the $500 billion cumulative volume milestone soon after. It took a few more months for the funds to reach the $750 billion mark this February.

The Bitcoin ETFs' cumulative trading volume now sits at $995.2 billion as of June 9, according to The Block's data dashboard, with bitcoin once again reapproaching its latest all-time high of $112,000, currently trading for around $109,850. At the current rate of $2.3 billion to $4.4 billion in daily trading volume registered over the past week, the $1 trillion milestone is likely to be hit within the next couple of days.

While the metric is up only in nature, it still represents a substantial milestone for the Bitcoin funds, competing against some of the largest and most established ETF products in the world, including the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) and the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) Nasdaq-100 Index.

In contrast, the U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs, launched in July 2024, have generated a cumulative trading volume of $83.4 billion so far.

BlackRock's IBIT dominates the spot Bitcoin ETF market share by trading volume and AUM

BlackRock's IBIT continues to dominate the spot Bitcoin ETF market in terms of trading volume. IBIT has grown from around a 22% market share at launch, with Grayscale's converted GBTC fund initially carrying an advantage over the newly launched products, to over 79% as of June 9, per The Block's data dashboard.

The spot Bitcoin ETFs now account for more than $120 billion in assets under management, according to The Block’s Bitcoin ETF Tracker page, again led by BlackRock’s IBIT with $70 billion in AUM.

In fact, IBIT became the fastest ETF to reach $70 billion in AUM on Monday, according to Bloomberg Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas. The fund accomplished the milestone in 341 trading days — five times faster than the former record holder GLD, the SPDR Gold Shares gold-based ETF that surpassed $70 billion in 1,691 days.

Responding to criticism that the Bitcoin ETFs have benefited the asset managers more than lifting the price of bitcoin, Balchunas noted that when BlackRock filed for IBIT, the price of bitcoin was around $30,000, and the "stench of FTX" was still in the air. "It's now $110k (a return that is 7x that of the mighty S&P 500) and is now seen as legitimate for other big investors. Call me crazy Holmes, but I'd say that's a lot of "lift,'" he said.

Meanwhile, the combined spot Ethereum ETFs have attracted $6.6 billion in AUM, per The Block's Ethereum ETF Tracker Page.

Compounding Bitcoin ETF flows

In terms of flows, the spot Bitcoin ETFs have now added a cumulative $44.9 billion since launch, according to data compiled by The Block. BlackRock's IBIT has again dominated the flows, accounting for $48.9 billion of the net figure alone. While most of the other funds have also contributed significant net inflows, the total figure is offset by more than $23.2 billion in net outflows from Grayscale's higher-fee GBTC product.

By comparison, the spot Ethereum ETFs have registered $3.4 billion in cumulative net inflows in just under a year after their debut.

"The [recent] market correction appears to be over, and the shift back toward larger risk appetites is clear," BRN Lead Research Analyst Valentin Fournier told The Block. "The divergence between BTC and ETH flows suggests Ethereum may lag, but overall momentum has returned."