US spot Bitcoin ETFs posted $201.8 million in net withdrawals on August 28, ending a nine-session streak of positive inflows. According to SoSo Value data, the change represented a $444.2 million day-over-day swing from the $242.3 million inflow recorded on August 27, though the ETF group still attracted a combined $3.04 billion during the nine-day inflow period. ARK 21Shares' ARKB led the outflows with $114.9 million, followed by Bitwise's BITB with $49.7 million. BlackRock's IBIT lost $33.4 million, while VanEck's HODL recorded $13.2 million in withdrawals. Morgan Stanley's MSBT partly offset the redemptions with a $9.3 million inflow. The reversal comes as Bitcoin's price action dropped from $80K to $78,275.24 at press time, making the shift from inflows to outflows understandable given the recent price decline.
Bitcoin fell below $78,000 after its breakout above $81,000 reversed, triggering a wave of long liquidations as traders took profits and bullish leverage unwound. According to CoinGlass data, the wider crypto market recorded $324.4 million in liquidations over 24 hours, with long positions accounting for approximately $270 million, representing 83% of total liquidations. The latest data from The Economic Times reports that $488 million in crypto positions were liquidated, including more than $360 million in leveraged longs, with Bitcoin's move below $77,000 triggering further forced selling. Bitcoin had reached $81,238 on Tuesday after breaking out of a consolidation range that had held for about 10 weeks, placing the cryptocurrency roughly 29.5% above its range low before sellers returned near the May high. The pullback followed a failed attempt to hold above $80,000, with Bitcoin reaching an intraday high near $81,200 earlier in the week but facing selling pressure as traders reacted to Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's speech at Jackson Hole.
While Bitcoin ETFs reversed course, altcoin ETFs continued their positive momentum with significant inflows. Ethereum ETFs recorded $102.18 million worth of inflows on August 28, bringing their ten-day total to $1.52 billion as Ethereum's price surged from around $1,900 to $2,458.84 at press time. XRP ETFs recorded $26.20 million in inflows, while Solana ETFs saw $18.08 million in inflows, with Solana ETFs accumulating roughly $1.7 billion in total inflows. Bitwise's Solana Staking ETF, BSOL, emerged as the largest beneficiary as the fund crossed $1 billion in AUM. XRP ETFs also hit a new 2026 record of $2 billion in combined Assets Under Management (AUM). This divergence suggests investors may be rotating from Bitcoin into altcoins ahead of the September effect, with the altcoin season index sitting at 30 representing a 'Bitcoin Season' that could provide room for Bitcoin to maintain leadership over altcoins.
Bitcoin was trading around $77,384 at the time of writing, down 2.5% over the past 24 hours, having briefly fallen to $77,078 on August 28 before stabilizing above $77,000. On the 4-hour chart, BTC has moved below the Bollinger Band midpoint at $78,815, with the upper band at $80,639 and lower band climbing to $76,992. The lower band now overlaps with the immediate support zone between $76,500 and $77,000. Bitcoin's Chaikin Money Flow reading has fallen to -0.14, showing that selling pressure has outweighed buying pressure during the latest decline. However, the daily moving average convergence divergence indicator remains positive, with the MACD line at 3,950.79 and the histogram above zero at 694.55, indicating the August rally has not produced a confirmed bearish crossover. Over the past week, Bitcoin and Ethereum were down 1.1% and 3% respectively, with total crypto market capitalisation declining from above $2.7 trillion.
The $75,000 strike carries the largest reported call concentration with approximately $236 million in notional value, while the $80,000 call strike follows with about $157 million. As reported by CoinDesk, more than $500 million of notional value lies within 5% of Bitcoin's prevailing market price, with both strikes now in-the-money as Bitcoin's rally pushed both levels above the current market price. The size and positioning of the expiry puts dealer hedging flows squarely in control of short-term price action heading into settlement, with calls outnumbering puts by a wide margin though the ratio doesn't confirm directional conviction as some calls sit inside spreads or covered positions rather than outright bullish bets.
Analysts see $72,000–$74,500 as the next buying area if current support fails, with Bitcoin's Fibonacci retracement between $126,234 and $57,795 placing the 78.6% level at $72,441. A Fibonacci retracement drawn between $126,234 and $57,795 places the 78.6% level at $72,441, with Bitcoin remaining above that long-term level but below the next major retracement resistance at $83,939. Analyst Sheldon Diedericks identified a potential buying zone between approximately $73,000 and $74,500 before a recovery attempt, while trader Eliz noted that a break below $75,000–$76,000 could open the way toward $71,000–$72,000, where stronger buying could emerge. Bitcoin must first reclaim $77,800–$78,000 to reduce immediate downside pressure, with the next resistance around $78,800, followed by $79,200–$80,000.
