Bitcoin surged past $80,000 on Tuesday for the first time since May, continuing a powerful rally that has marked its strongest weekly performance in over two years.
ETF inflows and rising demand fuel gains
Data from CoinGecko shows Bitcoin (BTC) reached an intraday high of $81,160.06, capping a seven-day gain of approximately 25.8%.
The recent momentum is closely linked to renewed demand via US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, which saw net inflows of $1.92 billion during the previous week.
Fabian Dori, chief investment officer at Sygnum Bank, highlighted that the rally has been driven by substantial spot demand and inflows from ETF allocators rather than by leveraged futures trading.
“This week’s strength has been led by fundamental spot demand and allocator flows through ETFs rather than by pure leverage, and rallies built on that base tend to be more durable than ones driven by crowded futures positioning,” stated Dori.
Mini dictionary: Exchange-traded fund (ETF): An investment fund traded on stock exchanges, ETFs typically track the price of an asset like Bitcoin and allow investors to gain exposure without directly holding the underlying cryptocurrency.
Policy decisions and market impact
The rally came as the US Treasury Department announced on Wednesday that it would at least double the maximum size of its long-end liquidity-support buybacks to $4 billion per operation. This move aims to boost liquidity in the market and was seen by market observers as a key catalyst for Bitcoin’s latest price surge.
In a separate development, President Donald Trump called on Congress to approve new crypto market structure legislation during an event at the White House, signaling continued interest in digital asset regulation at the highest levels of the US government.
Bernstein analysts, led by Gautam Chhugani, identified the Treasury’s buyback expansion as a major trigger for Bitcoin’s advance, emphasizing that the cryptocurrency often reacts positively to increased market liquidity.
Bernstein analysts noted that the Treasury’s liquidity measures have historically correlated with upward movements in Bitcoin’s price, describing the latest policy as a “strong trigger” for the current rally.
Comparison: Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF inflows
Alongside Bitcoin ETFs, Ethereum-based exchange-traded funds also experienced significant inflows. In the latest period, Bitcoin funds drew $608 million while Ether ETFs achieved their largest weekly inflow since October.
| Fund | Weekly Net Inflows | Recent Record |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin ETF | $1.92 billion | Strongest since January |
| Ethereum ETF | $608 million | Largest since October |
Analysts continue to monitor whether increased institutional participation and supportive policy moves will extend the current uptrend in the broader cryptocurrency market.
