After seeing the largest weekly inflow since April, Bitcoin ETF turns to a net outflow of $390 million, with institutional sentiment turning bearish again.

Zhitong Finance APP has learned that last week, U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw the largest single-week net capital outflows since the end of June, abruptly reversing the strong start at the beginning of August. According to compiled data, during the week ending August 10, the 13 Bitcoin ETFs listed in the U.S. experienced a combined net outflow of $389.7 million, whereas the previous week had recorded a net inflow of $853.5 million.

The first week of August marked the largest single-week capital inflow since April, and at the end of July 2026, there was a massive firmware vulnerability attack targeting Coldcard hardware wallets. This attack not only caused huge economic losses but also shook the market's confidence in the security of cryptocurrency self-custody, reigniting investor interest in protecting digital assets through traditional financial channels.

CertiK's head of capital markets and policy, Esme Pau, stated: "Last week’s ETF net outflows reflect the overall bearish sentiment in the Bitcoin market. The brief capital inflows after the Coldcard hacking incident now appear more like anomalous fluctuations, as broader institutional sentiment remains cautious or even leans pessimistic."

Amid renewed selling pressure on ETFs, the price of Bitcoin hovered near $63,000, about 50% below its all-time high reached last October. Ongoing interest rate risks continue to weigh on market sentiment, while the lack of progress on the U.S. proposed crypto market structure bill—the Clarity Act—at the legislative level has further prompted prospective buyers to stay on the sidelines.

Bitcoin ETFs offer investors a way to gain exposure to the price of Bitcoin without the need to hold or self-custody tokens directly. Even though there were slight net inflows for three weeks last month, underlying confidence remains fragile.

Recently, Coldcard—a brand of offline wallets under Toronto-based Coinkite—reported a security vulnerability, with a predictability flaw in its key generation mechanism, undermining trust in what was supposed to be the safest form of crypto asset storage. Against this backdrop, some investors believe the logic for gaining Bitcoin exposure through traditional asset channels has strengthened.

Last week, Bitcoin’s price traded almost sideways, with the fluctuation range narrowing to within 2%. At the time of writing, the price was around $63,650.

The implied volatility index, which gauges Bitcoin’s expected volatility based on option prices over the next 30 days, stood near 37 on Monday—below the year-to-date average, and far off the peak of 82.2 seen in early February.

ETF capital flows are a key indicator of institutional demand, as these products have become one of the main ways traditional investors gain Bitcoin exposure. Continued net outflows could put pressure on both the price and liquidity of Bitcoin, especially with other sources of demand remaining subdued.