Australian crypto broker Swyftx is set to acquire New Zealand crypto exchange Easy Crypto, with one of the CEOs nodding at positive crypto policy changes in the United States. 

Swyftx CEO Jason Titman said in a March 19 statement that they see “Trump’s policy messaging around crypto as a tailwind” for this deal. 

He told Cointelegraph that Swyftx’s deal with Easy Crypto was underway before Trump was elected, but now we are on “the cusp of sensible regulation in the US” that will bring liquidity and put pressure on other governments to legislate.

“Everyone is so focused on tariffs that they’re skipping the argument that good things are on the horizon for crypto,” Titman said.

“The environment for dealmaking is about to improve exponentially, and there is no question that money will move. This deal may be the first, but it won’t be the last.”

Following Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, some changes in the crypto industry have included several pro-crypto executives in top regulatory roles and a shift in crypto stance by the country’s securities regulator.

Titman says the crypto industry has endured a lean few years for mergers and acquisitions activity, partly because crypto CEOs were unwilling to “take the regulatory risk” they saw during the Biden administration.

“This hesitation has extended to other markets where regulators have sat on the fence and shown a lack of commitment to introducing clear legislation that supports blockchain and digital assets,” he said.

“We expect dealmaking to increase over the next few quarters and then stay elevated after that. Political administrations come and go, but rules tend to have a longer shelf life and that gives businesses the certainty they need to invest.”

Swyftx and Easy Crypto will continue to operate as separate platforms following the March 31 acquisition while the teams plan for their integration.

Related: Australian regulator’s ‘blitz’ hits crypto exchanges, money remitters

The new business will have a combined workforce of just under 200 employees and operate out of Brisbane, Australia, according to Swyftx and Easy Crypto.

Janine Grainger, co-founder and CEO of Easy Crypto, told Cointelegraph that the acquisition is a “natural fit” and would create a new oceanic heavyweight to rival crypto incumbents.

“The crypto market has changed rapidly in the last four years. As the market has matured, there has been a trend of the market consolidating and strong regional and global players emerging,” she said.

An August 2024 Swyftx survey estimates there are 3.9 million Australians who own crypto out of a population of 26 million. 

Meanwhile, research by Web3 consumer research firm Protocol Theory, in partnership with Easy Crypto, estimates almost 50% of New Zealand’s 5.2 million population are either current crypto investors or are considering investing in the future.

An estimated 3.9 million Australians currently own cryptocurrency, compared to 4.5 million in 2023. Source: Swyftx

In comparison, the US Fed estimates roughly 18 million people in America own or use crypto.

Grainger says there “is increasing interest in leveraging our industry” to help drive economic growth amid strong support for the industry in New Zealand.   

“There is strong support for crypto locally — close to 50% of New Zealanders own, have owned or are considering future investment into crypto,” she said.

“The region is undergoing increasing levels of regulation, which will help to drive trust, much like other regions.” 

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Opinion by: Simon McLoughlin, CEO at Uphold

2021 witnessed a fintech investment boom, with startups raising approximately $229 billion globally. Higher interest rates and tighter economic circumstances have since tempered that exuberance, but funds continue to pile into the sector. Indeed, the global fintech sector is expected to see a rebound in investment activity throughout 2025.

Why are investors continuing to bet big on this sector? The answer is simple. The current international finance system is in urgent need of modernization. Built for a pre-internet age, it relies on outdated processes, chains of intermediaries and a patchwork of non-standard regulations. 

An aging and expensive system

Take SWIFT as a case in point. Founded in 1973, SWIFT remains the backbone of cross-border payments. SWIFT is nothing more than a messaging system that enables banks to communicate around transactions. It was never designed to manage funds or process transactions. As a result, a “make do and mend” approach has grown around international payments, characterized by a proliferation of intermediaries and local payment rails.

This antiquated, fragmented system creates significant friction in cross-border transactions, leading to delays, high costs and limited choice for individuals and businesses outside major economic blocs. Fees for international payments currently average 1.5% for businesses and all the way up to 6.3% for remittances. Payments can take up to several days to reach recipients.

This system hinders global commerce and exacerbates financial exclusion, particularly in the global south, where volatile local currencies and limited access to traditional banking services are common.

Many of these friction points could be resolved by stablecoins, making transferring money across borders as easy as sending an email. Indeed, the blockchain-based currency has the potential to revolutionize global finance. 

Democratizing access to fiat currencies

For people in countries with volatile economies or unstable governments, stablecoins offer a safe haven for savings. Stablecoins pegged 1:1 to a fiat currency such as the US dollar provide consumers in these regions with a way to escape their national financial system with a trustworthy and transparent alternative that protects them from inflation and currency devaluation. This is particularly important in the global south, where economic instability can erode the value of hard-earned income and savings. 

According to UBS, consumers in developing countries are also attracted to stablecoins due to the lower risk of government interference with the currency. The wealth management firm believes stablecoins are increasingly seen as “digital dollars” and used for everything from savings to transactions to remittances in these regions. 

Empowering small businesses and freelancers

Stablecoins can significantly reduce the costs and complexities associated with international payments, enabling small businesses and freelancers to participate in the global marketplace on a more level playing field. This opens up new opportunities for entrepreneurship and economic growth in developing countries.

Recent: Dubai recognizes USDC, EURC as first stablecoins under token regime

In our current payment system, physical money does not cross borders — only information does. A payroll company looking to pay a freelancer in a third country cannot do so directly and must use systems like Stripe, which uses virtual bank accounts to get around the problem.

With stablecoins, payroll companies can pay in any currency to any currency, using crypto on- and off-ramps to facilitate the payment. The business pays in dollars, for example, which is on-ramped to Tether’s USDt (USDT) and sent to the freelancer’s digital wallet, where they can either keep it or off-ramp it to their local currency. Stablecoins will prove to be, and are, a vital tool in helping businesses access global talent and fill their skills gaps. 

Facilitating financial inclusion

Through offering an alternative to traditional banking systems, stablecoins also provide financial services to the unbanked and underbanked populations. This can be particularly transformative in regions with limited access to traditional financial infrastructure or in countries like Argentina, where there is low confidence in the national monetary system. 

According to the Bank for International Settlements, stablecoins can enable a wide range of payments and provide a gateway to other financial services, replicating the role of transaction accounts as a stepping stone to broader financial inclusion. 

Given their ability to provide access to financial services anywhere with an internet connection, stablecoins are seeing explosive growth in emerging markets. Use cases are expanding rapidly across Africa, Latin America, and parts of developing Asia, where they are being used to hedge against inflation, for remittances and cross-border payments, and as a simpler alternative to US dollar banking. This growth trajectory can be expected to continue in the years ahead. 

A shot in the arm for global business

Stablecoins are rapidly rising in popularity and already total more than $233 billion in market capitalization, while transaction volumes in 2024 reached $15.6 trillion, surpassing those of Visa. In an increasingly uncertain world, they offer a stable, low-cost and rapid means of transferring money across borders, helping to increase financial inclusion and smooth access to global talent for employers. Stablecoins are a digital-first financial tool for a digital-first world and are ideally suited to replacing the current archaic international payments system. 

Opinion by: Simon McLoughlin, CEO at Uphold

This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

Cryptocurrency-friendly investment firm ARK Invest has joined a massive Series A funding round for Apptronik, a Texas-based firm building humanoid robots.

Apptronik, on March 18, announced the successful close of an oversubscribed $403M Series A funding round, adding another $53 million to the $350 million round disclosed in February.

After investing in Apptronik’s Series A round, ARK has enabled investors to access the company through its ARK Venture Fund (ARKVX), which focuses on “disruptive innovation.”

Source: ARK Funds

“After investing in their Series A round, the ARK Venture Fund is proud to offer investors access to Apptronik! Download SoFi and gain access today,” ARK wrote in an X post on Tuesday.

Mercedes-Benz, Japan Post and Google among investors

Led by California-based B Capital and Texas-based Capital Factory, the original $350 million Series A raise also featured participation from tech mogul Google.

The latest raise included new investors such as the German automotive giant Mercedes-Benz, early-stage tech investor Japan Post Capital and RyderVentures, a corporate venture capital arm of Ryder System, as well as a syndicate led by Korea Investment Partners.

Apptronik’s oversubscribed raise reflects strong market demand and investor confidence in the transformative power of embodied artificial intelligence, or integration of AI into physical systems.

Apptronik’s vision: Man plus machine

Founded in 2016, Apptronik is a robotics company that spun out of the University of Texas at Austin’s Human-Centered Robotics Lab with the goal of bringing forth the next generation of robots.

The company says it has developed 15 robotic systems, including the humanoid robot NASA Valkyrie, before unveiling Apollo — an AI-powered humanoid designed for industrial work.

Apptronik’s humanoid robot at trailer unloading. Source: Apptronik

“We believe that it is not Man versus Machine, but Man plus Machine that will take humanity into the next stage of evolution,” Apptronik’s website reads.

According to TechCrunch, Apptronik’s humanoid work dates back to 2013, when the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Austin competed in the NASA-DARPA Robotics Challenge, focusing on a humanoid robot called Valkyrie.

Google’s AI division, DeepMind, has also partnered with Apptronik to deliver embodied AI for its bipedal robots.

Related: Not every AI agent needs its own cryptocurrency: CZ

ARK Invest’s investment in Apptronik further strengthens the company’s commitment to innovation and technology, as the company’s name acronym itself refers to “Active Research Knowledge.”

Apart from Apptronik, ARK has supported a wide number of AI platforms, including Anthropic, OpenAI, Groq and many others.

In October 2024, ARK reportedly agreed to invest at least $250 million in OpenAI’s funding round, with the AI firm becoming its third-largest holding in the Ark Venture Fund, accounting for 5% of its total assets.

Seven largest companies in the Ark Venture Fund. Source: ARK

As of Feb. 28, Elon Musk’s space technology firm, SpaceX, accounts for the largest share of the fund with a weight of roughly 16%, according to the official website.

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Coinbase exchange’s stock price has received an optimistic price prediction from a Bernstein analyst, citing improving crypto regulatory clarity in the world’s largest economy.

Gautam Chhugani, an analyst at global asset management firm Bernstein, initiated coverage of Nasdaq-listed Coinbase (COIN) stock with an outperform rating and a price target of over $310.

The analyst expects improving mainstream cryptocurrency adoption, driven by US President Donald Trump’s administration, which intends to make crypto policy a national priority and make the US a global hub for blockchain innovation, according to a Bernstein research note seen by Tipranks. 

If Coinbase shares manage to rise to $310, it would mean an over 64% rally from the current $188 mark, Google Finance data shows.

COIN/USD, all-time chart. Source: Google Finance

The bullish price prediction comes over a week after Trump hosted the first White House Crypto Summit on March 7, shortly before he signed an executive order that outlined a plan to create a Bitcoin reserve using cryptocurrency forfeited in government criminal cases, Cointelegraph reported.

Related: Bitcoin beats global assets post-Trump election, despite BTC correction

Coinbase stock may surge on improving crypto regulatory clarity in the US

Coinbase is set to benefit from crypto’s “ascendancy to the US financial mainstream” amid improving regulations, mainly due to the firm offering a one-stop platform for numerous crypto activities, wrote the research note, adding:

“COIN is described as a crypto exchange, but it is actually what a universal Bank would look like in the world of blockchain-based financial services.”

“COIN offers an exchange, broker/dealer, institutional prime desk, stablecoin banking, crypto payments, custodian bank, software and blockchain ecosystem services, all combined into a full stack ‘Amazon’ of crypto financial services,” added the report.

Related: FDIC resists transparency on Operation Chokepoint 2.0 — Coinbase CLO

Crypto regulation is heading in a positive direction, with some analysts seeing the US Bitcoin reserve plan as the first “real step” for Bitcoin’s integration into the global financial system.

“The US has taken its first real step toward integrating Bitcoin into the fabric of global finance, acknowledging its role as a foundational asset for a more stable and sound monetary system,” Joe Burnett, head of market research at Unchained, told Cointelegraph.

While Trump has previously highlighted his intentions to bolster crypto innovation in the US, issuing regulatory frameworks takes time and setting the “right regulatory tone” will be crucial for the administration, according to Anastasija Plotnikova, co-founder and CEO of Fideum — a regulatory and blockchain infrastructure firm focused on institutions.

Magazine: Bitcoin’s odds of June highs, SOL’s $485M outflows, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 2 – 8

Business intelligence firm and Bitcoin investor Strategy plans to offer 5 million shares of the company’s Series A Perpetual Strife Preferred Stock and use the proceeds to purchase more Bitcoin. 

In an announcement, the company said it intends to use the proceeds for general purposes. This includes its working capital and “acquisition of Bitcoin.” However, the company said this is still subject to market and other conditions. 

According to Strategy, the stock will accumulate cumulative dividends at 10% annually. The company also noted that stockholders would receive dividends on the stock quarterly, starting on June 30, 2025. 

Strategy said it could buy back all of this stock for cash if the total number of shares left in the market drops below 25% of the issued amount. 

Strategy makes smallest Bitcoin purchase on record

The announcement follows the company’s smallest known Bitcoin purchase. On March 17, the company announced that it purchased 130 Bitcoin (BTC) for $10.7 million in cash, at an average price of about $82,981 per BTC.

The most recent BTC buy is the company’s smallest amount since its first Bitcoin investment in August 2020. Before the latest purchase, the least amount of BTC bought by Strategy was a 169-Bitcoin purchase made in August 2024. 

Strategy’s smallest BTC purchase comes amid sentiments that the Bitcoin bull cycle is over. On March 18, CryptoQuant founder and CEO Ki Young Ju said the bull cycle is over and that he’s expecting 6 to 12 months of bearish or sideways price action. 

Related: Strategy’s Bitcoin stash still up over $7B despite market downturn

Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings near 500,000

Since its first Bitcoin investment, the company and its subsidiaries have accumulated 499,226 BTC at an aggregate purchase price of $33.1 billion. The coins were bought at an average price of $66,360 per BTC, including fees and expenses.

If the company buys 774 BTC (about $64 million), its total holdings will reach 500,000. This would be 2.38% of the entire Bitcoin supply. 

The company remains the largest corporate Bitcoin holder in the world and is still up by over $8 billion on its BTC investments despite the recent market downturn. At the time of writing, Strategy’s BTC holdings are worth about $41.1 billion. 

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Xapo Bank, a global cryptocurrency-friendly bank headquartered in Gibraltar, is betting on crypto lending revival by launching Bitcoin-backed US dollar loans.

Qualifying Xapo Bank clients can now access Bitcoin (BTC) loans of up to $1 million, the firm said in an announcement shared with Cointelegraph on March 18.

The new lending product is designed for long-term Bitcoin hodlers who want to access cash while keeping their BTC, Xapo Bank CEO Seamus Rocca told Cointelegraph.

“Unlike traditional assets, Bitcoin is an ideal form of collateral — it is borderless, highly liquid, available 24/7, and easily divisible, making it uniquely suited for lending,” Rocca said.

No collateral re-usage

A key distinction of Xapo’s Bitcoin loan product is that the bank does not rehypothecate the loan collateral by users, meaning that its lending mechanism does not involve the re-usage of BTC assets by clients.

Instead, the Bitcoin collateral is stored in Xapo’s BTC vault using institutional multiparty computation (MPC) custody.

Working of a crypto lending platform.

Eligible Xapo clients can choose repayment schedules of 30, 90, 180 or 365 days, with no penalties for early repayment, the firm said.

Who is eligible?

Xapo’s new Bitcoin lending offering will be available to pre-approved members based on several criteria.

The key criteria for eligibility are the amount of Bitcoin holdings and the period of holdings, as Xapo specifically targets long-term BTC holders with a long-term investment strategy.

According to the bank, the offering will be available to global investors in regions like Europe and Asia, excluding residents of the United States.

The list of jurisdictions supported by Xapo Bank. Source: Xapo Bank

Xapo Bank is regulated by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission under the Financial Services Act 2019. In 2024, the bank successfully passported its banking license in the United Kingdom, granting its Xapo Bank App full access to the country.

While Xapo’s lending is offered across the European Union, crypto lending is not covered by local regulations like the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework.

A revival following numerous collapses

Xapo Bank’s new BTC loan launch comes a few years after the crypto lending industry suffered a major crisis in 2022.

The crisis came amid the historic Terra crash and a subsequent bear market that triggered the collapses of major lending providers like Celsius and BlockFi.

“The collapse of Celsius, BlockFi, and other centralized lenders significantly eroded trust in the crypto lending space,” Xapo Bank CEO told Cointelegraph.

An example of the Bitcoin lending process on the Xapo Bank App. Source: Xapo Bank

“Borrowers today exercise greater caution, prioritizing platforms with a proven track record in Bitcoin custody and those that offer secure, transparent solutions — especially ones that do not engage in rehypothecation,” Rocca said, adding:

“At the same time, demand for Bitcoin-backed loans is on the rise, particularly among high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors who seek liquidity without selling their Bitcoin holdings.”

In addition to removing asset rehypothecation and MPC security, Xapo offers risk management tools and proactive protection to prevent automatic liquidations.

Related: Bitwise makes first institutional DeFi allocation

“In the event of a Bitcoin price drop, customers receive instant notifications, allowing them to either top up their collateral or make partial repayments to maintain their loan status,” Rocca noted.

Xapo is not the only firm that has been working to introduce lending products in 2025. In early March, Bitcoin developer Blockstream secured a multibillion-dollar investment to launch three new institutional funds, with two of them offering BTC lending.

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Dogecoin (DOGE) price has crashed by over 70% after hitting $0.48 in December 2024. Interestingly, the memecoin’s richest holders have accumulated during the price declines, indicating their confidence in a potential rebound in the coming weeks.

Dogecoin onchain metrics hint at price rebound

Onchain data from Santiment shows that wallets holding at least 1 million DOGE have increased by 1.24% since early February, despite declining prices. Meanwhile, active addresses have surged to a four-month high, suggesting rising network activity.

Dogecoin addresses holding at least a million DOGE vs. price. Source: Santiment

Typically, when large holders accumulate an asset while prices decline, it signals that they see undervaluation and are positioning for a future rebound.

An increase in active addresses indicates higher engagement on the network—possibly reflecting growing retail interest.

If this surge in user activity stems from real adoption rather than speculative trading or panic selling, it could provide the onchain foundation needed for a price recovery. A similar pattern was observed during the DOGE’s 200%-plus price rally in November.

DOGE is oversold, raising chances of 30% rally

Dogecoin is currently testing a support confluence comprising a multi-year ascending trendline support, a level that has historically triggered strong bullish reversals and the 200-week exponential moving average (200-week EMA) at around $0.13.

DOGE/USD weekly price chart. Source: TradingView

Additionally, the Stochastic RSI, an indicator measuring momentum and overbought/oversold conditions, shows a bullish cross in the oversold region (below the 0.30 reading).

This signal typically indicates that selling pressure is weakening. In DOGE’s case, this crossover at low levels has preceded strong price recoveries, notably a 400% price rally in 2024 and 88% gains in 2023.

Related: Crypto market is seeing a ‘tactical retreat, not a reversal’ — Binance CEO

The first major resistance level lies near $0.22, aligning with DOGE’s 50-week exponential moving average (50-week EMA; the red wave) and the March-April 2024 resistance area, as shown below.

DOGE/USD weekly price chart. Source: TradingView

However, if DOGE fails to hold the support confluence, the bullish setup could be invalidated, leading to a deeper correction toward $0.12, which served as support in the March-May 2024 period.

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

A Bitcoin whale has closed over half a billion dollars in short positions, betting on Bitcoin price’s decline ahead of the much-awaited Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting this week.

A large crypto investor, or whale, made nearly $10 million profit after closing a 40x leverage short position for 6,210 Bitcoin (BTC) — worth over $516 million — which functions as a de facto bet on Bitcoin’s price fall.

Leveraged positions use borrowed money to increase the size of an investment, which can boost the size of both gains and losses, making leveraged trading riskier compared to regular investment positions.

Bitcoin whale closed shirt positions. Source: Hypurrscan

The savvy whale closed all his short positions within a few hours, making a $9.46 million profit from Bitcoin’s decline, Hypurrscan data shows.

The whale opened the initial $368 million position at $84,043 and faced liquidation if Bitcoin’s price surpassed $85,592.

The whale managed to turn a profit, despite having to add $5 million to his short, after a publicly-formed team of traders started to “hunt” his short position’s liquidation, which ultimately failed, noted Lookonchain, in a March 17 X post.

Bitcoin whale made $9.4 million in profit. Source: Hypurrscan

After closing his Bitcoin shorts, the whale started accumulating Ether (ETH) with his profits, acquiring over 3,200 Ether for over $6.1 million at 7:31 am UTC on March 18, Etherscan data shows.

The profit-taking comes a day ahead of the upcoming FOMC meeting on March 19, which will offer market participants more cues on the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy path for 2025 and has the potential to impact investor appetite for risk assets such as Bitcoin.

Related: Bitcoin experiencing ‘shakeout,’ not end of 4-year cycle: Analysts

Bitcoin may see upside on easing inflation concerns: Analyst

Inflation-related concerns are starting to ease following the release of February’s US Consumer Price Index (CPI), which revealed a lower-than-expected 2.8% year-on-year increase compared to the expected 2.9%.

Easing inflation-related concerns may be a positive sign for the upcoming FOMC meeting, according to Fumihiro Arasawa, co-founder and CEO of xWIN Research.

The lower CPI reading may also be a positive sign for Bitcoin’s trajectory, the CEO told Cointelegraph, adding:

“This suggests that inflationary pressures are gradually easing, which could influence the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decisions.”

“Bitcoin’s short-term price action will depend on whether it can hold the $81,000 support level. A sustained hold could stabilize sentiment, while a breakdown may trigger further corrections,” added Arasawa.

Related: Crypto market’s biggest risks in 2025: US recession, circular crypto economy

Bitcoin target rate probabilities. Source: CME Group’s FedWatch tool

Markets are currently pricing in a 99% chance that the Fed will keep interest rates steady, according to the latest estimates of the CME Group’s FedWatch tool.

“The market largely expects the Fed to hold rates steady, but any unexpected hawkish signals could put pressure on Bitcoin and other risk assets,” Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget Research, told Cointelegraph.

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Nearly all United States spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) had net negative performances in March as analysts expect a bearish Bitcoin trend of up to 12 months. 

Farside Investors data showed that spot Bitcoin ETFs struggled in March, with net outflows surpassing their monthly net inflows. Asset manager BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) suffered the most, with outflows reaching $552 million and inflows of only $84.6 million. 

According to the data, Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) saw outflows of over $517 million and had inflows of only $136.5. The data also showed that Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC) had outflows of over $200 million and had zero inflows. 

However, Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF (BTC) is the only one that defied the trend, with zero net outflows for March and over $55 million in net inflows. 

Spot Bitcoin ETF flows in millions. Source: Farside Investors

US Spot Bitcoin ETFs had outflows of over $1.6 billion in March

Overall, the spot Bitcoin ETFs combined had outflows of over $1.6 billion in the first 17 days of March and recorded only $351 million in inflows. This wasn’t enough to offset the losses, bringing the net outflow to nearly $1.3 billion.

Meanwhile, Ether-based investment products aren’t doing any better. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) had the most outflows, reaching $126 million, but it did not record any monthly inflows. Fidelity’s Ethereum Fund (FETH) recorded outflows of about $73 million but only had $21 million in inflows. 

Ether ETFs had negative results throughout March, except for March 4, when inflows reached $14 million. However, spot Ether ETFs performed poorly in the rest of March, with over $300 million in total outflows.

Spot Ether ETF flows in millions. Source: Farside Investors

Related: Yuga exec warns about ‘true bear market’ Ether price as whales scramble

CryptoQuant CEO says BTC bull cycle is over

The performance of crypto exchange-traded products comes as sentiments for Bitcoin and the crypto market turn bearish. 

On March 18, CryptoQuant founder and CEO Ki Young Ju said the “Bitcoin bull cycle is over.” The executive expects up to a year of bearish or sideways price action. Ju argued that onchain metrics indicate a bear market. The executive said that new whales are selling low as liquidity dries up. 

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Nearly all United States spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) had net negative performances in March as analysts expect a bearish Bitcoin trend of up to 12 months. 

Farside Investors data showed that spot Bitcoin ETFs struggled in March, with net outflows surpassing their monthly net inflows. Asset manager BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) suffered the most, with outflows reaching $552 million and inflows of only $84.6 million. 

According to the data, Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) saw outflows of over $517 million and had inflows of only $136.5. The data also showed that Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC) had outflows of over $200 million and had zero inflows. 

However, Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF (BTC) is the only one that defied the trend, with zero net outflows for March and over $55 million in net inflows. 

Spot Bitcoin ETF flows in millions. Source: Farside Investors

US Spot Bitcoin ETFs had outflows of over $1.6 billion in March

Overall, the spot Bitcoin ETFs combined had outflows of over $1.6 billion in the first 17 days of March and recorded only $351 million in inflows. This wasn’t enough to offset the losses, bringing the net outflow to nearly $1.3 billion.

Meanwhile, Ether-based investment products aren’t doing any better. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) had the most outflows, reaching $126 million, but it did not record any monthly inflows. Fidelity’s Ethereum Fund (FETH) recorded outflows of about $73 million but only had $21 million in inflows. 

Ether ETFs had negative results throughout March, except for March 4, when inflows reached $14 million. However, spot Ether ETFs performed poorly in the rest of March, with over $300 million in total outflows.

Spot Ether ETF flows in millions. Source: Farside Investors

Related: Yuga exec warns about ‘true bear market’ Ether price as whales scramble

CryptoQuant CEO says BTC bull cycle is over

The performance of crypto exchange-traded products comes as sentiments for Bitcoin and the crypto market turn bearish. 

On March 18, CryptoQuant founder and CEO Ki Young Ju said the “Bitcoin bull cycle is over.” The executive expects up to a year of bearish or sideways price action. Ju argued that onchain metrics indicate a bear market. The executive said that new whales are selling low as liquidity dries up. 

Magazine: Mystery celeb memecoin scam factory, HK firm dumps Bitcoin: Asia Express