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Ether outruns bitcoin as ETF money returns, almost all of from BlackRock's fund
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- DeepHorus
Ether has outperformed Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies this week, rising about 11% over seven days as most other large-cap tokens remained flat or declined. Bitcoin, in contrast, gained only 4% over the same period, while Solana, TRON, and Hyperliquid all posted losses. The rally comes amid a softer U.S. inflation print on Tuesday, but analysts say that alone does not explain Ether's strength.
The broader crypto market has been mixed, with Bitcoin trading near $64,600, down 0.3% on the day but up 4.2% weekly. Ether traded near $1,920, up 2.2% on the day, with a market value of about $231 billion and daily volume of roughly $12 billion. Below them, the tape turns negative: Solana fell 1.1% to $77, TRON slipped to $0.32, and Hyperliquid’s HYPE lost 1.8% to $66.
Two factors have provided tailwinds for Ether this week. First, inflows into U.S. spot Ether ETFs accelerated, with $96 million added in the first three days of the week—already surpassing the $84 million gathered all of last week. The funds had bled through late June, shedding $82 million on June 25 alone. BlackRock’s low-fee products dominate: on Wednesday, its ETHA absorbed $45.3 million and its ETHB took $4 million, leaving the other eight products to split less than $5 million.
Second, Ether picked up a new demand source from Robinhood Chain, a layer-2 network launched July 1 that uses Ether for gas and settles to Ethereum. The network has been clearing more than $800 million in daily decentralized exchange volume, mostly memecoin trading. This demand did not exist three weeks ago, providing a structural boost to Ether.
Bitcoin’s ETF flows remain inconsistent, however. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs shed $424 million on July 13, then took back $181 million the next day. Such volatile movements are not indicative of an allocator building a position. Meanwhile, Grayscale’s original Ether trust, which charges 2.5% against BlackRock’s 0.25%, has bled $5.3 billion since launch.
Nansen data shows Bitcoin exchange outflows holding steady through the Middle East escalation, with no meaningful rotation into stablecoins—the move that usually marks wallets stepping back. Funding rates are near zero, suggesting overleveraged longs that fueled June’s liquidation cascades have already been cleared out. Bitcoin dominance stands at 58.3%.
The market’s reaction underscores a narrower rally for Ether, driven by specific ETF inflows and new on-chain activity. CEX trading volumes rose for the first time in five months in June, with spot climbing 15.3% to $1.11 trillion and real-world asset perpetual volumes surging to a record $311 billion. This renewed interest, combined with Ether’s structural advantages, may sustain its outperformance in the near term.
