Bitcoin Spot ETF Filings with the SEC Have a Pleasing Progress: Coinbase Analysts Weigh In

Updated 13F filings for US spot Bitcoin ETFs reveal promising signs of growing institutional interest in BTC, according to Coinbase’s weekly market report.

Hedge funds are increasing their investments in Bitcoin, with spot Bitcoin ETF assets reaching $4.7 billion in Q2.

“We think the continued spot Bitcoin ETF inflows amid Bitcoin’s underperformance could be a promising indicator of continued interest in crypto from the new pools of capital that ETFs provide access to,” Coinbase analysts David Duong and David Han wrote. ETFs have increased access to crypto because they trade on exchanges like traditional stocks, meaning asset managers no longer need to purchase BTC directly to gain exposure to crypto.

13F reports are only filed by firms with more than $100 million in assets under management, making them an indicator of the level of institutional appetite and ownership for specific assets. Analysts have noted increased interest in spot BTC ETFs in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the first quarter when the first BTC ETFs were launched.

“An increasing portion of these flows appear to be driven by institutions, whose equity ownership rose from 21.4% to 24.0%,” Coinbase analysts wrote in the report.

The report highlighted an increase in institutional inflows from the “investment advisor” category. These advisors manage significant amounts of capital and often make decisions on asset allocation, investment strategies and specific securities purchases on behalf of their clients.

“The proportion of institutional owners categorized as ‘investment advisors’ increased from 29.8% to 36.6%, and from 6% to 9% of total shares,” Duong and Han said.

*This is not investment advice.