BTC ETFs rebound as XRP funds stall

TLDR

Bitcoin ETFs are seeing a medium term recovery in assets while XRP ETFs are losing momentum with thinning flows.

1. Bitcoin (BTC) spot ETFs have clawed back a chunk of prior outflows and are roughly flat for 2026, even after a weak recent week.
2. XRP spot ETFs, which launched strong, are now seeing very low or negative net flows, with March turning into their first month of net outflows.
3. The divergence reflects BTCs role as the core institutional crypto asset versus more cautious positioning in XRP, with macro conditions and regulation shaping what happens next.

Deep Dive

1. Bitcoin ETF Flows Recovering

Reports on spot Bitcoin ETFs show a clear pattern of medium term repair. After roughly 9 billion dollars of outflows following October 2025 turmoil, they have already reversed about 3 billion dollars, leaving 2026 flows close to flat so far, according to one analysis of ETF data that compares current positioning with the October shock period.

Over the latest week, however, BTC ETFs did post about 296 million dollars of net outflows, breaking a four week positive streak, with the largest single day outflow around 225 million dollars concentrated in leading funds like BlackRocks IBIT. Even so, cumulative net inflows remain large at about 55.9 billion dollars and total net assets near 85 billion dollars for U.S. spot products, while broader BTC ETF AUM across markets sits around 86.92 billion dollars over the past month.

2. XRP ETFs See Flows Stall

Spot XRP ETFs started with impressive demand. In their first month after a November 2025 debut, five funds collectively attracted more than 1 billion dollars of net inflows, helped by the narrative around regulatory clarity and payments use cases.

Recent data now show that this momentum has stalled. In March 2026, XRP ETFs saw more days with zero recorded flows than with meaningful activity, with several sessions at exactly 0 dollars and only small net inflows of about 1.40 million and 1.26 million dollars on two midweek days, according to one detailed flow breakdown. March is on track to be the first month of net outflows, near 29 million dollars, despite cumulative inflows since launch remaining above 1 billion dollars and net assets around 933 million dollars for one flagship product.

3. Why Flows Diverge And What To Watch

Several forces help explain why BTC ETF assets are stabilizing while XRP funds stall. First, BTC remains the primary benchmark and collateral asset for institutions, so even when macro shocks drive temporary outflows, it tends to be the first place TradFi money returns when risk appetite improves.

Second, CoinShares latest fund report shows broad digital asset products had 414 million dollars of outflows in a week, with Ethereum losing 222 million dollars while XRP still managed modest inflows of about 15.8 million dollars, highlighting that flows into XRP ETFs are more fragile and episodic than BTCs larger base.

Third, XRPs dedicated regulatory wins and commodity classification have not yet translated into a sustained institutional bid. Forecasts increasingly point to the U.S. CLARITY Act and related market structure bills as the next potential catalysts, alongside macro drivers like Federal Reserve policy, oil prices, and overall crypto risk sentiment.

Conclusion

Bitcoin ETF flows show a market that has absorbed last years shock and is tentatively rebuilding institutional exposure, even with occasional risk off weeks. XRP ETFs, by contrast, are transitioning from a hot launch phase into a more challenging environment where flows have flattened and sometimes reversed.

Going forward, watching daily and weekly ETF flow tables for both BTC and XRP, alongside progress on U.S. crypto legislation and macro data, will be crucial for judging whether this divergence persists or begins to close.