On March 4, the price of Bitcoin rose above $71,800, lifting the entire digital asset market, including Ethereum, which settled above $2,050.
15-minute BTC/USDT chart from Binance. Source: TradingView.
15-minute ETH/USDT chart from Binance. Source: TradingView.
This increase was supported by strong demand for U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, which saw an influx of $1.4 billion over the past five days.
ETF Pitfalls
Analysts at Bitfinex attributed Bitcoin's previous stagnation to the nature of exchange-traded funds. They noted that market reactions are also tempered by rising oil prices and geopolitical tensions.
Authorized participants—large banks and market makers—issue new ETF shares. Amid rising demand, they often sell investors shares they do not yet have in stock. Regulators allow such operations: traders can purchase actual Bitcoin to back sold shares with a delay of several hours to a day.
As a result, the influx of funds into the ETFs is immediate, while the actual purchase of cryptocurrency on the spot market is postponed. When market makers finally buy the digital asset, their transactions are often countered by selling pressure, keeping the price within a narrow range.
“The funds' capitalization is growing, but Bitcoin's price remains stagnant due to the lack of immediate spot transactions. This can make the price appear artificially suppressed,” experts stated.
Bitfinex analysts added that under normal conditions, such delays do not significantly impact prices. However, during periods of high volatility, the time lag between ETF demand and actual purchases can distort the price of the leading cryptocurrency.
Largest ETF Drawdown
An analyst using the pseudonym Darkfost pointed out the record dollar drawdown faced by investors in spot Bitcoin ETFs.
📉 Bitcoin ETFs experienced the largest drawdown since launch
— Darkfost (@Darkfost_Coc) March 4, 2026
Holders of spot Bitcoin ETFs, which reflect investor demand, are currently under pressure compared to the average realized price, estimated at around $79,000.
💡 This metric should be considered as an… pic.twitter.com/oWA0QHyDes
According to his calculations, the average entry price for buyers of these funds is around $79,000. With Bitcoin trading below $70,000, investors are incurring losses. The expert clarified that this metric serves as a guideline but accurately reflects the average purchase cost in the market.
During the correction, outflows from the funds exceeded $8.9 billion, with the main impact on BlackRock's IBIT. From its peak of 806,000 BTC, the fund lost over 42,000 BTC, significantly pressuring the asset's price.
Darkfost noted that the situation is gradually stabilizing, with the total drawdown from historical highs reduced to $7.8 billion.
Overall Picture
On March 3, the net inflow into U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs was $225.15 million.
Source: SoSoValue.
The positive trend has continued for the second week. The total inflow on March 2 and 3 reached $683.3 million. Previously successful figures from the past week ended a prolonged outflow period totaling nearly $4 billion.
Among altcoin-based funds, the dynamics are mixed. Spot ETFs on Ethereum lost $10.75 million in capital.
Source: SoSoValue.
Products based on XRP and Solana, on the other hand, attracted $7.53 million and $1.03 million, respectively.
Market sentiment remains pessimistic despite Bitcoin's 9.5% price increase over the past week. The Fear and Greed Index has dropped to 10.
Source: Alternative.
Billionaire Ray Dalio criticized Bitcoin again in the All-In podcast, pointing to its lack of privacy, potential threats from quantum computing, and its small market size compared to gold.
Ray Dalio just warned against Bitcoin:
— Simply Bitcoin (@SimplyBitcoin) March 3, 2026
“No privacy.”
“Central banks won’t buy it.”
“Quantum risks.”
“Small, controlled market.”
Funny.
Those same critiques were made at $100. pic.twitter.com/hDCltK9rwH
Bitwise's Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan called Dalio's arguments a long-term opportunity.
“This is why Bitcoin's size is only 4% of gold. If these issues didn’t exist, the coin's price would already be around $750,000. I invest in the first cryptocurrency partly because I believe the situation will change over time,” Hougan wrote.
On March 3, Wintermute experts stated that the crypto market remains fragile due to rising energy prices and structural changes in the global economy.