The Bitcoin ETFs were approved back in January 2024. This allowed more institutional investors to join the Bitcoin train. It was a long overdue decision by the SEC, and it took a court decision to basically force the SEC to approve Bitcoin ETFs.
For those unaware Grayscale probably has the highest contribution for the approval of the Bitcoin ETFs. Grayscale started their Bitcoin trust way back in 2013. This trust was basically the only way for institutions to get some Bitcoin exposure. The way it worked is that the trust was sort of proxy for Bitcoin, but it was not directly convertible to Bitcoin. Because of this the Grayscale trust shares were often trading at different prices than Bitcoin. Grayscale grew over time and before the approval of the ETFs it had more than 600k Bitcoins or more than 3% of the Bitcoin supply.
Grayscale wanted to convert the trust into ETF for a long time. The SEC was not allowing this, Grayscale sued the SEC and the court decided that the SEC needed to approve Grayscale application for ETF. The decision of the court was back in August 2023 and in January 2024 the SEC approved the Bitcoin ETFs.
With this short history of the Bitcoin ETFs approval process let’s take a look at the data since that happened.
Here we will be looking at:
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Daily ETF Flows
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ETF Flows Breakdown by Fund
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Cumulative ETF Inflows
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ETF Holdings by Fund
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Top ETFs
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Top Holders Change
The data presented here is gathered from Dune Analytics and other public ETF trackers.
Daily BTC ETFs Inflow
Here is the chart for the daily ETF inflows.
Most days still move around the zero line, with strong positive bursts in 2024 and several large spikes through early 2026.
From May into June 2026 the pattern turned clearly weaker, while July stabilized. The month finished slightly positive at 1,021 BTC, although July 28 closed with a 778 BTC outflow.
Cumulative Bitcoin ETFs Holdings
When we plot the cumulative ETF holdings we have this:
The chart starts near 620k BTC rather than zero because Grayscale’s existing trust holdings were converted into an ETF when the products were approved.
Holdings then expanded through 2024 and 2025, with another strong run into early 2026. The total reached a record 1.54M BTC on May 6, before sustained selling in May and June pulled the line sharply lower. July brought a partial stabilization rather than a full recovery. This is the first major multi-month correction after the strong expansion at the start of the year.
Overall the ETF group still holds 1.41M BTC as of July 28, more than double the starting base. The latest level remains roughly 126k BTC below the May peak, but the long-term accumulation trend is still clearly positive.
On a monthly basis the data looks like this:
February 2024 remains by far the strongest month, adding about 120k BTC to the ETFs.
2026 started positive, with 22.8k BTC in February, 18.2k in March and 24.4k in April. This reversed in May and June with losses of 32.9k and 73.6k BTC, while July recovered only 1.0k.
When we break down the old and the new coins in the BTC ETFs we get this chart:
The starting holdings remain fixed at about 619.5k BTC, while the newly added portion has grown to 789.5k BTC. This means the new accumulation is now larger than the original converted base and brings the combined total to 1.41M BTC. The new holdings climbed strongly through early May 2026, then declined during the heavy May and June outflows before stabilizing in July. Even after that correction, the ETFs have added nearly 790k BTC since launch. The pace will move in cycles, but the chart still shows how much demand has developed in only two and a half years.
BTC ETF by Fund
When we breakdown the cumulative amount of Bitcoin in the ETFs by fund we get this:
Grayscale started with the dominant position, but its holdings declined steadily as BlackRock expanded. BlackRock is still by far the largest holder, although its balance fell from the May peak to about 797k BTC by July 28. Grayscale ended near 160k BTC, while its Mini fund grew to almost 59k BTC.
Fidelity now holds the second spot at roughly 188k BTC. Together, BlackRock, Fidelity and Grayscale account for just over 81% of the Bitcoin held across these ETFs.
The chart for BlackRock only looks like this:
BlackRock accumulated aggressively from launch, paused briefly in 2024, and then accelerated again through 2025 and early 2026. Holdings peaked near 885k BTC on May 6 before the May–July pullback. The fund still holds about 797k BTC and remains the clear market leader.
BlackRock VS Grayscale
When we plot the holdings of these two, we have this.
The two funds still show an almost inverse long-term pattern: Grayscale moved down from its converted trust base, while BlackRock grew rapidly after launch. BlackRock overtook Grayscale in June 2024 and widened the gap substantially through early 2026.
As of July 28, BlackRock holds about 797k BTC versus 160k for Grayscale. Fidelity, with about 188k BTC, also remains ahead of Grayscale in second place.
Top BTC ETFs Holders
The chart for the top BTC ETF holders as of July 28, 2026 looks like this:
BlackRock remains dominant with about 797k BTC, followed by Fidelity at 188k BTC and Grayscale in third place with roughly 160k BTC.
The ownership split remains concentrated: BlackRock alone holds about 57%, while the top three funds together control just over 81% of all BTC in these ETFs.
Overall, the ETFs remain strong long-term holders despite the May–June drawdown. July stabilized the trend, but the latest daily flows show that the recovery is still uneven.
All the best
@dalz
