The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) witnessed substantial outflows yet again, with over $166 million and more than 2,500 Bitcoins withdrawn on Friday, April 12. Farside Investors Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) reported that GBTC outflows have surpassed $16.2 billion since transitioning to spot Bitcoin in January. Throughout April, daily outflows from GBTC ranged between $75 million and $300 million, signaling ongoing investor disengagement.
The slowdown in inflows into other spot Bitcoin ETFs also suggests reduced investor participation. GBTC faced a significant outflow of $767 million this week, resulting in net negative flows to the spot Bitcoin ETF. However, BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF, managing over $15 billion, is gaining momentum and narrowing the gap with GBTC.
Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein indicated on April 10 that outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust might be stabilizing, reflecting some optimism among traders and investors. Nonetheless, outflows persist, indicating continued uncertainty in the market.
One potential driver behind the substantial outflow from GBTC could be its relatively high management fee of 1.5%, significantly higher than the average fee of 0.30% among its competitors. Sonnenshein highlighted that while new products often spark excitement initially, market consolidation occurs over time as investors focus on select products.
According to data from Farside, GBTC experienced $17.5 million in outflows on April 10, marking a significant decrease from the $154.9 million outflow recorded on April 9. The lowest outflow was observed on February 26, amounting to $22.4 million. Since January, GBTC has averaged daily outflows of $257.8 million. GBTC, launched in 2015 and converted to an ETF in January, saw the introduction of nine other spot Bitcoin ETFs by Grayscale following a lawsuit win against the SEC, compelling a review of a previously rejected GBTC conversion offer. Additionally, bankrupt cryptocurrency lending firm Genesis recently sold around 36 million GBTC shares to acquire 32,041 Bitcoins.
