Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States are heading for a record-breaking month, helping push Bitcoin to new all-time highs amid rising institutional demand.
The US-listed spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs recorded more than $1.5 billion in combined inflows over a two-day period, with $608 million on May 21 and $934 million on May 22, according to data from Sosovalue.
A repeat performance of the past two days’ inflows would see monthly inflows surge to $6.68 billion, surpassing the monthly record of $6.49 billion from November 2024.
Bitcoin ETF inflows, monthly, all-time chart. Source: Sosovalue
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ETF inflows helped Bitcoin rise to a new all-time high of $112,000 on May 22 before retracing to above $110,700 on May 23, up over 19% in the past week, TradingView data shows.
BTC/USD, 1-year chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
The “robust” ETF inflows and Bitcoin’s rise to new all-time highs signal growing institutional demand and rising realized profits “without increased sell pressure,” Nexo dispatch editor Stella Zlatareva told Cointelegraph.
“Institutional inflows, corporate balance sheet moves, and macro dislocation converge into a clear message: Bitcoin is no longer the alternative — it’s becoming the benchmark,” she added.
Recent surges in ETF demand coincided with $1 billion worth of Bitcoin being withdrawn from Coinbase on May 9 — a move analysts view as a signal of increasing institutional appetite.
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Institutional inflows to push Bitcoin to $200,000 in 2025
The “structural” inflows from institutions may help Bitcoin surpass the $200,000 “base case” before the end of 2025, according to Bitwise’s head of European research, André Dragosch.
“So the base case is $200,000, conditional on the US government not stepping in. If they step in, it will move closer toward $500,000,” Dragosch told Cointelegraph, referring to the US government’s proposition to make direct Bitcoin acquisitions through “budget-neutral” strategies.
Bitwise’s “in-house prediction” for 2029 is a $1 million Bitcoin price target, as Bitcoin’s market cap will surpass the market capitalization of gold, as the leading safe-haven asset, Dragosch explained.
Top 10 global assets by market capitalization. Source: CompaniesMarketCap
However, gold’s $22.3 trillion market capitalization is still over 10 times larger than Bitcoin’s $2.2 trillion, which makes BTC the world’s fifth-largest asset, according to CompaniesMarketCap data.
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