BlackRock's cryptocurrency ETF saw a net decrease of $350 million in the second quarter

BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) and spot Ethereum ETF (ETHA) recorded a combined net capital outflow of $3.5 billion in the second quarter of 2025. According to a disclosure filed with the SEC on August 6, this follows a net inflow of $1.39 billion in the same period last year, representing a significant swing of $17.4 billion on an annual basis. In the disclosure, the "capital-stock" item represents the difference between contributions linked to issued shares and distributions linked to redeemed shares. This is measured separately from changes in net assets due to market price fluctuations. During the three months ending June 30, IBIT saw contributions of $4.3 billion and distributions of $7.2 billion, resulting in a net outflow of $2.9 billion. ETHA experienced contributions of $943.3 million and distributions of $1.5 billion, leading to a net outflow of $583.4 million. The combined net outflow for both funds was $3.5 billion. During the second quarter, IBIT's operating activities reduced the trust's net assets by more than $7 billion, while ETHA saw a reduction of $1.5 billion. These figures include realized and unrealized losses at the trust level. The activity statement shows that 106,148 BTC and 778,39 ETH were sold as a result of redemptions. According to the footnotes, this item includes spot distributions of $3.85 billion in Bitcoin and $940 million in Ethereum, but the details of the individual transactions are not disclosed. The disclosure does not identify the entities that initiated the stock redemptions, and it is not possible to definitively conclude that the entire token quantity was sold in the open market. Early in August, some signs of inflows were observed. According to Farside Investors data, $196.8 million flowed into IBIT and $50.3 million flowed into ETHA on August 5. Over the three trading days from August 3 to 5, inflows totaled $478.5 million for IBIT and $83.8 million for ETHA. The combined inflow of $562.3 million represents approximately 15.9% of the $3.5 billion outflow. Assuming a consistent daily average of $187.4 million, it would take approximately 19 trading days to offset the $3.5 billion outflow. The disclosure suggests that short-term inflows alone are not sufficient to determine whether the redemption trend has eased, and that sustained buying over several weeks would be a more meaningful indicator.