Italy’s State-Owned Bank Trials Digital Bonds on Polygon Blockchain
The European Central Bank initiated the trial to explore how blockchains can enhance central bank settlement.
Digital asset investments have seen their largest weekly inflows since July 2022 owing to a flurry in activity related to exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
According to a report shared by CoinShares, digital asset investment products saw a monumental weekly inflow totalling $199 million. This marks the first week of inflows following nine straight weeks of outflows. Bitcoin ($BTC) represents the majority, comprising $187 million of the total (around 94%).
This week in Fund Flows, by @jbutterfill:
A sharp shift to bullishness among investors, injecting US$199m in digital asset investment products.
This marks the largest single weekly inflow since July ’22, correcting almost half of 9 consecutive weeks of outflows. 🧵 (1/5) pic.twitter.com/TvZ0EM2KLU
— CoinShares (@CoinSharesCo) June 26, 2023
According to the report, the surge in activity can be attributed to high-profile exchange-traded product (ETP) issuers that filed for ETFs:
“We believe this renewed positive sentiment is due to recent announcements from high profile ETP issuers that have filed for physically backed ETFs with the US Securities & Exchange Commission. Total assets under management (AuM) are now at US$37bn, their highest since before the collapse of 3 Arrows Capital.”
The increase in Bitcoin inflows has had an impact on the inflows for Ethereum’s token too. Ether ($ETH) inflows increased to $7.8 million over the past week.
Bitcoin price surges from ETF interest
This comes following a surge in Bitcoin price earlier in the month. With interest in ETFs, especially coming from institutional investors including Black Rock, Fidelity, Wisdom Tree, Invesco, and Valkyrie, Bitcoin price hit the highest value it has this year, hovering above $31,400.
Before the surge, the price of Bitcoin was struggling amidst regulatory concerns in the United States, where leading cryptocurrency exchanges including Binance and Coinbase were under fire from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Whether Bitcoin price will correct and find a stable price following the increased interest remains to be seen.