Bitcoin’s Recent Outperformance Fueled by Institutional Demand, JPMorgan Says

Optimism about the approval of a spot bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded-fund (ETF) by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to grow, JPMorgan (JPM) said in a research report on Wednesday.

This optimism is reflected in bitcoin’s strong outperformance versus other digital assets, the report said, noting that the world’s largest cryptocurrency recently made a new high for the year.

“It looks like this latest flow impulse had institutional participation,” analysts led by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou wrote.

The bank’s analysis of the crypto futures market supports this assertion.

“Our futures position proxy based on CME bitcoin futures, which tends to be used mostly by institutional investors, has spiked over the past week rising not only to the highest level for this year but also to levels last seen in August 2022 before the FTX collapse,” the analysts wrote, referring to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

JPMorgan says the equivalent futures position proxy for CME ether (ETH) futures remains subdued.

Institutional participation in the recent rally is also reflected in analysis of bitcoin flows, the note said. There has been a large BTC inflow into larger wallets, which points to institutional investor demand.

This contrasts with previous quarters “when the bitcoin impulse was led by smaller wallets thus more driven by retail investors,” the report said.

Read more: Bitcoin’s Rise Fueled by U.S. Investors Buying Ahead of Potential Spot ETF Approval: Matrixport