Analyst: Institutional Demand Softness Combined with CEX Inflow Pressure, Bitcoin Market Faces Dual Selling Pressure

BlockBeats News, February 19th, Cryptocurrency market analyst Axel posted on social media, stating that the data from the past week has revealed a growing gap between the institutional demand narrative and actual fund flows. ETF fund inflows momentum remains unstable, while exchange net flow continues to stay positive, with tokens flowing into exchanges rather than out.

Over the past 7 days, the total net outflow of the US spot Bitcoin ETF reached 11,042 BTC, with only two trading days recording net inflows. On February 12th, a single-day outflow reached 6,120 BTC (approximately $416 million), marking the largest outflow day of this period. On February 17th and 18th, two consecutive trading days saw outflows of 1,520 BTC and 1,980 BTC respectively, indicating that institutional accumulation momentum has not yet formed.

At the same time, exchange platform supply continues to increase. Since early February, the net flow of exchanges has remained positive, ranging from +391 BTC to +841 BTC over the past week. Today's reading is +553 BTC, continuing the two-week trend of positive inflows. This starkly contrasts with the pattern in January, which remained negative (tokens flowing out of exchanges).

Axel stated that both key indicators are pointing in the same direction: over the past week, there has been a 11,042 BTC outflow through the ETF channel, while exchange platform supply continues to grow. Institutional demand has not only failed to absorb the market's new supply but has itself become an additional source of selling pressure. The establishment of a positive accumulation trend requires at least three consecutive trading days of positive ETF net inflows and a sustained shift in exchange net flow to negative territory (indicating tokens being withdrawn from exchanges for custody accumulation). The next 3 to 5 trading days of ETF flows will be a key variable in determining market direction.