According to the source, BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF ranked sixth for 2025 ETF net inflows while down 9.6% year to date, and it is the only fund in the top-25 inflow cohort posting negative returns, per Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas. Persistent inflows alongside negative performance indicate continued allocation to BTC via the ETF, a gauge traders track using Bloomberg’s daily fund flow data to assess spot demand, per Bloomberg. Net creations in IBIT require the trust to purchase BTC with cash proceeds, translating inflows into underlying spot demand that traders monitor around U.S. session prints, per the iShares Bitcoin Trust prospectus from BlackRock.

According to Eric Balchunas, recent weekly fund flows show VOO and IBIT at the top, mirroring last year's trend when 'beta with a side of bitcoin' dominated investment strategies. Notably, IBIT has climbed to 8th place in year-to-date ETF flows with over $6.4 billion in net inflows, a significant rise from being outside the Top 50 earlier this year. This surge, especially post-bitcoin decoupling, signals aggressive bitcoin accumulation within IBIT, highlighting heightened institutional demand and robust ETF trading activity for bitcoin-linked products (source: Eric Balchunas, Twitter, May 5, 2025).