Bitcoin climbed toward $82,000 in late September, nearing its highest level since January amid a resurgence of institutional interest. On September 18, US spot Bitcoin ETFs logged net inflows of $433 million—driven primarily by Fidelity and BlackRock—reversing the sharp outflows seen earlier in the week. Even so, total net inflows for the week were a modest $6.2 million.
The advance in Bitcoin came despite the Federal Reserve’s 25 bp rate hike last week and its guidance for further tightening, alongside persistently elevated US Treasury yields. This decoupling from the broader macro environment has renewed discussion of Bitcoin’s role as a potential hedge against market and economic risk.
On the regulatory front, the Senate failed to advance the Clarity Act on September 15, while both the SEC and CFTC continued to pursue crypto rulemaking under their existing mandates. The CFTC also submitted a proposal on crypto-market regulation to the White House for review.
