BTC rallied over 4% to $69,706 on Monday morning after reports that mediators delivered a ceasefire proposal to both Iran and the US. The bounce came with $270 million in short liquidations and pushed the market out of its lowest Fear & Greed reading since late 2025. But here's the thing. Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $173.7 million in outflows on April 1, with BlackRock's IBIT alone shedding $86.5 million.
March saw $1.32 billion in inflows. April so far has $69 million. The institutional bid that carried BTC through Q1 is cooling fast. And BTC went into the Easter weekend with ETF and CME futures both offline, meaning there was zero institutional hedging for 72 hours.
The rally reads more like a positioning flush than a trend change. Interesting that retail is buying the ceasefire headline while institutions quietly step back.