Major Funds Experience Significant Withdrawals

Ethereum Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) have experienced a significant downturn, recording $555 million in net outflows over the two-week period ending October 24. This marks the first consecutive two-week decline for these funds since April 2024 and highlights a growing divergence in investor sentiment, as Bitcoin ETFs simultaneously attracted $446 million in new capital.

The selling pressure was widespread across major providers. Data shows that during the week of October 20-24 alone, Ethereum ETFs suffered $243.91 million in net outflows. Fidelity’s FETH led the redemptions with $95.2 million leaving the fund, while BlackRock’s ETHA saw $89.1 million in investor withdrawals. Grayscale’s two Ethereum products also contributed to the trend, with its ETHE and ETH funds losing a combined $49.6 million. Other funds from Bitwise and VanEck added another $10 million to the total outflows, signaling cooling institutional demand for Ethereum exposure.

Macroeconomic Factors and Price Performance

These outflows occurred as Ethereum’s price struggled to maintain momentum following declines earlier in October. Broader macroeconomic concerns fueled a risk-off sentiment among market participants, who were also awaiting key U.S. inflation data. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) report revealed that headline inflation rose slightly from 2.9% to 3.0% between August and September, while core inflation eased from 3.1% to 3.0%.

The inflation data has shifted expectations for future monetary policy. According to the CME FedWatch tool, there is now a 96.7% probability of a 25-basis-point interest rate cut this week. This potential easing could influence investor appetite for risk assets like cryptocurrencies.

Technical Outlook Remains Positive

Despite the headwinds from ETF flows, Ethereum’s price has shown resilience. After hitting a low of $3,880 on October 24, the asset staged a strong recovery, breaking through the $4,200 resistance level over the weekend. At press time, Ethereum was trading at $4,229, up over 7% in the last 24 hours.

Some analysts suggest the technical structure points toward further gains. Crypto analyst Pascal noted that ETH appears to be completing a corrective phase within the Elliott Wave theory, which often precedes a strong upward breakout. This bullish outlook is supported by a MACD crossover on the daily charts, with short-term price targets potentially reaching $4,600.