Demand for Ethereum-based spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) is on the rise, and this may be a watershed moment for the largest altcoin to gain institutional adoption.
Ethereum ETFs saw inflows of 154,000 ETH over the past week, which is five times their previous weekly average. If investors—including institutions—were not paying attention to Ethereum before now, they certainly are now.
$ETH spot ETFs are heating up. This week alone, they’ve seen 154K #ETH in inflows – 5x higher than their recent weekly average. For context: the biggest single-day $ETH inflow this month was 77K #ETH on June 11th. pic.twitter.com/8Xlerbc6GX
— glassnode (@glassnode) June 13, 2025
The standout moment was June 11, the day on which ETFs recorded their largest single-day inflow of ETH for the month, with 77,000 ETH poured in. Not only was the scale of the figure quite notable, but it also suggested something interesting: A rebalancing in the ETF world between Bitcoin and Ethereum. For the longest time, Bitcoin has been the ETF darling, with inflows flowing to the tune of tens of thousands of BTC. But suddenly, it looks like Ethereum has caught up quite nicely.
In contrast, Bitcoin ETFs have not seen nearly the same level of reception. This week’s total of 7,800 BTC inflows—while somewhat above average—pales in comparison to the peak we saw in May, when daily inflows reached as high as 7,900 BTC on May 23. Though Bitcoin reigns as the dominant asset in the world of crypto investments, Ethereum’s recent performance hints at rising interest in its broader ecosystem and long-term utility.
Ethereum Futures Open Interest Tops $20 Billion
In a further show of strength for Ethereum, cash-margined ETH futures open interest hit a record high this week, sailing past 20 billion dollars. This development indicates an upsurge in not-so-subtle trading activity, and an uptick in trading that Ethereum is a Thriving market for futures and options trading that the platform Ethereum is a park for possibilities that is often seen as a precursor to the implementation of the shift to Ethereum 2.0.
Open interest is rising, and that signals the traders are gearing up for future moves. More and more, those moves don’t seem to involve direct ownership of ether, and in fact, traders appear to be perfectly content gaining exposure via stablecoins and other collateralized forms of banking. This aligns with another trend: the rise of derivatives in crypto trading. These are becoming a key short-term market driver.
The increase in leverage does not seem to be an isolated or speculative occurrence. The concurrent upsurge in ETF inflows indicates that both institutional investors in the Ethereum spot market and traders in the futures market who are using leverage have a high level of confidence in Ethereum’s performance in the near term.
Bitcoin Maintains Stability But Loses the Spotlight
Despite Ethereum’s explosion of activity, Bitcoin ETFs continue to perform, if not steadily, then without much drama. This week, the ETFs reported inflows of 7,800 BTC, which is just an eyebrow-raising number without the context of what it means. The context is that these inflows are pretty much the same as what we saw last week and the week before that, at least in terms of not having any kind of noticeable increases or decreases.
$ETH futures open interest (cash-margined) just hit a new all-time high – topping $20B. Despite a slight pullback from the $2.8K levels, leverage continues to build as traders load up using stablecoins. pic.twitter.com/XP3KmhkdJ1
— glassnode (@glassnode) June 12, 2025
Certainly, Ethereum ETF potential chatter is way more exciting than anything directly linked to Bitcoin, but that doesn’t mean Bitcoin ETFs aren’t doing their own exciting things, at least in a sense that it’s almost as if they’re functioning like a stablecoin at this point.
Bitcoin still commands the lion’s share of attention among traditional financial players, not surprisingly because it is the original and, by far, the most recognized cryptocurrency. That said, Ethereum’s wider and more dynamic range of use cases—something that spans decentralized finance, non-fungible tokens, and infrastructure for layer-2 solutions—seems to be grabbing the notice of institutions that are looking for an even broader base of exposure to blockchain applications.
Inflow data may also show a difference between ETH and BTC because of the larger market cycles and portfolio strategies—part of the natural evolution of an investable asset. Bitcoin, having already undergone a significant rotation of capital earlier this year post-ETF approval, was already benefitting from a more apparent positioning by institutional investors. Meanwhile, Ethereum is apparently only starting to see this same effect and benefit.
Conclusion: A New Phase for Ethereum on Wall Street
The sharp increase in inflows into ETH ETFs, together with inflows into futures that are setting all-time records, indicates that Ethereum is generating interest among a diverse array of investors. Whether these investors want longer-term exposure via a spot ETF or to express a directional view using high-leverage futures contracts, Ethereum is emerging as a go-to asset for many.
Although Bitcoin is still the foundation for getting exposure to the world of cryptocurrencies, it is becoming increasingly clear that Ethereum is the true value proposition. Institutional investors now understand that Ethereum is not simply a representative alternative to Bitcoin. This is partly because the regulatory situation for cryptocurrencies has improved, and products like Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have matured.
Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.
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