Crypto ETFs Attract Record $12.8B in July as Market Momentum Accelerates

U.S.-listed crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw their strongest month on record in July, pulling in $12.8 billion in net inflows as investor appetite surged amid a broad market rally and rising regulatory optimism.

The record-setting figure, reported by Bloomberg Intelligence’s Eric Balchunas, eclipses the previous peak seen in November 2024 — when the election of crypto-friendly candidate Donald Trump fueled a sharp uptick in flows. This time, however, the momentum appears to be driven more by underlying fundamentals than political tailwinds.

The broader crypto market, as tracked by the CoinDesk 20 Index, gained over 21% during the month. Bitcoin rose 7% in July, briefly hitting a new all-time high of $122,408 before settling around $115,240 by month-end.

A major contributor to the surge in flows was BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which has quietly become one of the largest ETFs in the U.S. With more than $86 billion in assets under management, IBIT now surpasses traditional equity giants such as the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM). IBIT’s relatively higher fee structure has also made it a more profitable product for BlackRock than its core equity offerings.

The rally in flows may be reinforced further by structural improvements. Earlier this week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved in-kind creation and redemption mechanisms for all spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs — a technical enhancement expected to improve tax efficiency, liquidity, and institutional usability.

In-kind redemptions allow asset managers to exchange crypto assets directly without triggering taxable events or facing slippage in illiquid conditions, making ETF operations more seamless at scale.