HedgeCo.Net — U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds attracted about $6.34 billion of net inflows in the third quarter of 2026, their strongest quarter of the year, according to SoSoValue data cited by Cointelegraph on October 1. The quarter reversed roughly $5 billion of second-quarter net outflows, and bitcoin gained 42.71% over the period, per CoinGlass. September inflows totaled $2.65 billion, after $3.52 billion in August and $172 million in July.
The quarter ended on a softer note. The funds recorded $148.7 million of combined net outflows on September 30, ending a nine-day streak that brought in about $3.1 billion, according to data compiled by The Block. Fidelity’s FBTC led outflows with $125.6 million, followed by Bitwise’s BITB at $13.6 million, while BlackRock’s IBIT saw $9.5 million leave, ending its own nine-day, $1.6 billion run.
The Block put cumulative spot bitcoin ETF net inflows since January 2024 at more than $57 billion, with about $970 million year to date and over $100 billion in assets. Bloomberg’s James Seyffart noted the funds remain about $5 billion below their cumulative flow peak of last October. Spot ether ETFs drew about $3.05 billion in Q3 but saw $59.6 million of outflows on September 30.
For crypto hedge funds and allocators, the Q3 data show regulated wrappers again acting as the marginal source of spot demand after a weak first half. Whether that persists into the fourth quarter will depend on the rates path; The Block noted a softer core PCE print eased expectations for an October Fed hike, a backdrop that has historically mattered for flow-driven crypto beta.