Bitcoin Trading Shifts to US Hours as ETFs Rewrite Global Market

Crypto market data provider Kaiko highlights a major structural shift in Bitcoin trading driven by U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Two years after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the first spot Bitcoin ETF in January 2024, trading patterns in the cryptocurrency market have clearly changed.

U.S. trading sessions now account for 47% of global Bitcoin spot volume, up from 38% before the ETF launch.

Average market depth, which remained largely stagnant between $12 million and $15 million from 2021 to 2023, has risen substantially, exceeding $40 million at times in 2025 and stabilizing at a higher range across sessions.

The transformation traces to the introduction of regulated U.S. vehicles that offered institutions and retail investors transparent, on-exchange exposure to Bitcoin.

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has grown into the category leader, with assets under management near $50–55 billion in recent data and daily trading volumes of $16–18 billion, approaching levels seen on major crypto exchanges such as Binance.

The top three Bitcoin ETFs collectively hold more than $73 billion, accounting for 80.6% of total U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF assets.

This concentration has redirected substantial activity. More than $50 billion in monthly volume has shifted toward U.S. trading hours.

Sustained monthly U.S. session volume rose from approximately $77 billion in late 2023 to $105 billion levels throughout 2025. 

According to Kaiko, trading patterns, once dispersed around the clock, now show clearer alignment with traditional U.S. market schedules.

Bitcoin is becoming more integrated into mainstream financial markets, with U.S. ETFs driving deeper liquidity and more predictable trading patterns. The shift also signals that institutional flows now have a stronger influence on global price discovery.

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