Traders Pile Into ETH Shorts as US ETF Outflows Hit Nine Days

US spot Ethereum ETFs shed $56.1 million on October 9, with the ninth consecutive daily outflow coming entirely from BlackRock’s fund.

These vehicles allow investors to hold ETH via a standard brokerage account. Since September 29, roughly $697 million has exited, wiping out most of the $850.8 million they accumulated over the prior seven sessions.

Ethereum ETF Withdrawals Tie a Nine-Day June Run

That losing streak now matches the nine-day outflow run from June 17 to June 30, according to BeInCrypto’s Ethereum ETF streak coverage.

SoSoValue data puts combined holdings in the funds at $15.71 billion, down from nearly $17.9 billion in late September.

ETH itself traded at $2,496, barely changed over 24 hours, per BeInCrypto’s Ethereum price data. It was at $2,715.50 on October 2.

Bitcoin (BTC) funds, by contrast, attracted $21.13 million on Friday. That came after $729 million had left across October 7 and 8.

Wu Blockchain cited SoSoValue data showing $21.13 million in net inflows for US spot Bitcoin ETFs on October 9, with BlackRock’s IBIT drawing $22.38 million, while Ethereum ETFs logged a ninth straight day of outflows.

Binance also reflected the retreat from ETH. Customers on the exchange reduced their ETH by 183,602 in September while they added Bitcoin.

Ethereum Has $5B in Shorts Stacked Above Its Price

While institutional capital withdraws from Ethereum financial instruments, derivatives traders have been building positions that bet on a decline. Those positions, known as shorts, are frequently taken with borrowed money.

“Most of the ETH downside liquidity has been taken out for now. Now there are $5 Billion in shorts vs. $1.53 Billion in longs. The only concern is weakening spot demand for Ethereum, which is still making a strong case for more correction,” Ted Pillows, an analyst, noted.

When shorts are forcibly closed, ETH has to be bought. A wave of such closures can push the price higher, potentially sparking a short squeeze.

Earlier in the week, Pillows flagged $2,547 to $2,565 as a support zone and warned that losing it could send ETH toward $2,190. ETH has since fallen below that range.

In Friday’s data, ETF buyers are absent while short sellers remain crowded overhead. Monday’s flow figures will reveal whether the streak reaches its 10th day.