$2.9B Bitcoin ETF Outflows, Bearish Futures Data Project More BTC Offloads

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The high volume and high liquidity from Bitcoin trading show that the market is clearing out high-leverage buyers.

Bitcoin options gauges show pro traders on the fence for further price cuts amid tech stock selloff.

Bitcoin (BTC) slipped below $73,000 on Wednesday after briefly testing the $79,500 level on Tuesday. The decline mirrored a decline in the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite, led by chipmaker AMD's ( AMD US ) weak sales outlook and disappointing U.S. employment data.

Traders now fear more Bitcoin price pressure, as exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have lost more than $2.9 billion in 12 trading days.

Since January 16, an average of $243 million per day corresponds to the flow of Bitcoin ETFs listed in the U.S., which corresponds to a decline of $98,000 on January 14. The subsequent 26% correction in three weeks has raised $3.25 billion in long-term BTC futures. If buyers do not deposit additional margin, any leverage above 4x is already wiped out.

Some market participants blamed the latest crash on the delay after the $19 billion liquidation due on October 10, 2025. That incident was reportedly triggered by a performance issue with Binance exchange database queries, resulting in delayed transfers and incorrect data feeds. The exchange admitted to technical problems during the sale and paid more than $283 million in compensation to affected users.

Haseb Qureshi, managing partner of Dragonfly, said that Binance has not been able to replenish the large amount of liquidity, but the liquidity engines continue to fire regardless. This caused the market makers to disappear, and they could not pick up the pieces. Qureshi added that the October 2025 crash “didn't break the market” permanently, but market makers “need time to recover.”

According to the analysis, the liquidity mechanisms of cryptocurrency exchanges “are not designed to stabilize themselves in the way that TradFi mechanisms (circuit breakers, etc.) are.” Qureshi described cryptocurrencies as a “long series” of “bad things,” but historically, the market eventually recovers.

BTC options skew signals traders to doubt $72,100 bottom

Professional traders should review the BTC options markets to determine if they have reversed their bearishness after the crash. During times of stress, demand for put (traded) instruments increases, pushing the delta skew metric above the neutral threshold of 6%. Excessive defensive interest often indicates bulls' lack of confidence.

The delta skew of BTC options reached 13% on Wednesday, a clear sign that professional traders are not sure that the price of Bitcoin got down to $72,100. This skepticism stems from fears that the technology sector could increase as Google ( GOOG US ) and AMD release proprietary artificial intelligence chips.

Related: Bitcoin Open Interest Drops by $55B in 30 Days–What's Next for BTC Price?

Another source of comfort for Bitcoin owners involves two unrelated and unfounded rumors. First, the $9 billion sale of Bitcoin by Galaxy Digital Client by 2025 has previously been cited as the dangers of quantum computing. However, Galaxy's head of research, Alex Thorne, denied those rumors in an X post on Tuesday.

A second consideration involves Binance's solvency, which temporarily halted trading on Tuesday after the exchange experienced technical issues. Current onchain metrics suggest that Bitcoin deposits on Binance remain relatively stable.

Given the current uncertainty surrounding macroeconomic trends, many traders have opted to exit the cryptocurrency market. This shift makes it difficult to predict whether Bitcoin spot ETF flows will continue to put downward pressure on the price.