Institutional Investors Drive Largest Weekly Inflows into Crypto Asset Funds Since Late 2021

According to CryptoPotato, institutional investors are showing renewed interest in crypto assets, with institutional-grade crypto asset funds experiencing their largest weekly inflows since late 2021. Fund manager CoinShares reported a new record of inflows of $346 million for the week, marking the highest total observed in the past nine weeks. Giovanni Vicioso, the global head of cryptocurrency products at CME, noted that the increase in volume and open interest in crypto derivatives markets is a "clear indication that institutions are moving into this space." CoinShares revealed that the fresh inflow of funds has pushed total assets under management to an 18-month high of $45.3 billion. Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart predicted that spot Bitcoin funds will be approved during the second week of January. ETF Store President Nate Geraci commented on the potential approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs, stating that it "will be mass chaos if SEC doesn’t allow GBTC to up list at the same time as other spot BTC ETFs launch." Institutional investors have historically led retail investors when it comes to investing in crypto. Over the past five weeks, yearly highs in weekly inflows have been observed, with spot market capitalization gaining around 24% during the same period. The crypto market has had a strong week, with total capitalization rising to an 18-month high of $1.52 trillion on December 2. Bitcoin led the pack with a surge toward $40,000, while Ethereum surpassed $2,100 and SOL solidified its position above $60. Chainlink (LINK) was the top high-cap mover with a 7% increase on the day to top $16 at the time of writing.