BlackRock ETF Crosses $2B, Fidelity Counters Grayscale Outflows as ETF Google Ad War Begins

Bitcoin (BTC) has faced some pressure at the Wall Street open on January 29, hovering around $42,000 as fresh outflows from exchange-traded funds (ETFs) began.

Despite retreating from weekend highs of $42,800, the largest cryptocurrency maintained a promising weekly close but encountered obstacles into the new week.

Outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) resumed, totaling $360 million on the day. This marked a further decrease from previous daily outflows and approximately 50% of peak daily outflows.

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart highlighted that over $5 billion had left GBTC since its conversion to an ETF. Spot Bitcoin ETFs saw net inflows of $759 million on January 26, indicating a market shift despite the GBTC outflows.

Ahead of the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates on January 31, market participants remained cautiously optimistic but prepared for volatility.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting was expected to lay the groundwork for rate cuts from March onward, potentially affecting market dynamics.

Fidelity's spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) reported $208 million in daily inflows on January 29, surpassing outflows from the GBTC for the first time outside their launch day.

The GBTC experienced nearly a 25% drop in outflows compared to January 26, marking the second-lowest outflow day since its conversion to a spot Bitcoin ETF.

Additionally, nine new U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a combined volume of $994.1 million, nearly doubling that of the GBTC.

The AD Campaign War Has Begun

BlackRock, VanEck, and Franklin Templeton have launched advertising campaigns on Google for their spot Bitcoin ETFs following Google's updated policy permitting advertisements for Crypto Coin Trust products in the U.S.

This policy change provides ETF providers with a platform to engage with a wider user base and potentially accelerate the mainstream adoption of Bitcoin ETFs, which are seen as a bridge between traditional finance and crypto.

However, concerns have been raised within the crypto community about potential misuse of the new policy, emphasizing the need for vigilance and caution, as scammers could take advantage of that.

For this reason, internet users must install ad blockers to protect themselves from fraudulent websites that could evade Google's screening measures.