Bitcoin crossed the $100,000 mark again on May 8 as institutional investors continue stacking sats.

Farside Investors’ data shows that spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded cumulative net inflows of $142.3 million on May 7, in a sign of “sustained institutional interest,” according to the founder of Obchakevich Research, Alex Obchakevich.

“These inflows indicate the activity of institutional investors, including hedge funds and asset managers, who continue to accumulate BTC through regulated instruments,“ he said.

The ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) led with $54 million in inflows, followed by Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) at $39 million and BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) at $37 million. Data from Arkham Intelligence shows BlackRock acquired more than 86 Bitcoin worth $8.4 million in a single transaction on May 7.

24-hour Bitcoin price chart. Source: CoinMarketCap

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ETF inflows show bullish momentum

On May 8, Bitcoin ETFs saw over $117 million worth of inflows, this time led by IBIT with $69 million, followed by FBTC with $35 million and ARKB with $13 million. Obchakevich also pointed to the strengthening correlation between Bitcoin and tech stocks. “BTC correlation with the Nasdaq was 0.75, indicating the influence of sentiment in the tech market,” he said, adding:

“The positive movement of the Nasdaq on May 8–9 supported BTC, which led to growth above $100,000.“

Obchakevich said the positive trend goes as far back as May 2, when IBIT inflows were as high as $675 million. He said that a continuation of this trend was the most likely outcome:

“The trend of institutional buying was likely to continue on May 8-9, unless there were sharp macroeconomic or geopolitical shocks.”

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Grayscale Bitcoin Trust plays by different rules

Obchakevich explained that “the absence of significant outflows in key ETFs other than Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) supports the hypothesis that the whales and funds remain bullish.” GBTC outflows, he said, are justified by different factors.

Obchakevich said GBTC outflows “are of particular importance because it is the largest Bitcoin ETF, and its high fees ~1.5% are driving investors to switch to cheaper alternatives, which affects the price of Bitcoin and market dynamics.” According to the analyst, GBTC outflows are caused by “a combination of factors starting with tariffs, the political crisis, and the conflict between Pakistan and India.” He added:

“The GBTC outflow is related to these factors as investors are not confident in the stability of GBTC.“

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