When Bitcoin exchange-traded funds went live, some scoffed that elderly investors could finally buy Bitcoin in peace.
Now it seems that those investors are keeping Bitcoin’s price afloat.
“ETF investors have largely displayed diamond hands during [the] recent Bitcoin downturn,” Nate Geraci, co-founder of the ETF Institute, said on X on Friday.
Diamond hands refers to holding a financial asset and not selling it, regardless of its volatility.
As Bitcoin plunged to the lower $60,000 range from its October 2025 peak of $126,000, around $6.5 billion flowed out of ETFs, according to Geraci. That’s a “drop in the bucket” compared to the $107 billion that has flowed into ETFs since they launched in January 2025, he argued.
Others agree, reckoning that many are missing the forest for the trees when observing ETF flows.
“I’ve been harping on this. As an ETF watcher you know just how absurd this strength [is] amid a 50% drawdown,” Eric Balchunas, Bloomberg Intelligence ETF expert, wrote on X.
“This is the real story.”
Indeed, this isn’t the first time market watchers tout the stickiness of spot Bitcoin ETF investors. Back in 2025, when tensions flared between Israel, Iran, and the US, Bitcoin ETFs notched 10 straight days of inflows, according to data from Ecoinometrics.
That consistency highlighted something pretty profound: that institutions were done speculating, and instead, even amid market jitters, were allocating.
Today’s numbers support that thesis. If barely 10% of ETFs have left these funds amid a 50% drawdown, then ETF investors are clearly in it for the long haul.
“50% drawdowns are a walk in the park for long-time Bitcoin investors,” said Geraci. “But it appears newer ETF investors aren’t worried either.”
Pedro Solimano is a markets correspondent based in Buenos Aires. Got a tip? Email him at psolimano@dlnews.com.
