Did BlackRock’s Bitcoin Sale and Trump’s Tariffs Cause the $326M Crypto Outflow?

YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — On April 8, spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States saw a total outflow of $326.27 million, according to Farside Investors and SosoValue. It was the largest daily withdrawal since March 10 and marked the fourth day in a row of consistent capital exits.

BlackRock’s ETF, IBIT, had the largest outflow, losing $252.29 million in one day. That is IBIT’s biggest single-day outflow since Feb. 26. Its total historical net inflow still stands at $39.66 billion.

Bitwise’s BITB came next, with a daily outflow of $21.27 million. Its total inflow remains $1.97 billion. None of the twelve US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded any net inflow on April 8.

An image shared by @crypto_goos on X reveals that BlackRock’s IBIT ETF moved over $250 million worth of Bitcoin to Coinbase Prime. The transfers, each between $23 million and $24 million, took place within a short timeframe. These large outflows happened just before or during the reported ETF withdrawals, pointing to a likely effort by BlackRock to either liquidate holdings or adjust its portfolio in response to market conditions.

Bitcoin Drops on Tariff Shock as RSI Signals Bearish Trend

Following Donald Trump’s April 2 announcement of new import tariffs, the S&P 500 dropped sharply, falling below 5,000 by April 7. The index lost nearly 400 points in less than five days, marking a 1.75% decline. Some recovery followed on April 9, but the initial drop wiped out trillions in market value.

Bitcoin traded above $82,000 in early April, showing brief stability despite U.S. market volatility. However, between April 5 and 6, the price broke support and sharply dropped below $75,000, reaching levels near $74,250 according to the 4-hour chart on TradingView.

The decline came during a weekend when traditional financial markets were closed. Bitcoin’s 24/7 liquidity allowed large investors to adjust exposure while other assets remained inaccessible. This feature made Bitcoin the main option for de-risking during global uncertainty sparked by new U.S. import tariffs.

The RSI (Relative Strength Index) fell under 40 and stayed there for several candles, showing weak price momentum and potential oversold conditions. As of April 9, the RSI sits at 42.15, while the 50-period EMA (Exponential Moving Average) is trending above the current price at $80,747, signaling that Bitcoin is still under bearish pressure on short timeframes.

Bitcoin Futures Data Shows Lower Trader Activity

Open interest in Bitcoin futures dropped to $50.81 billion, falling 0.27% in one day, based on Coinglass data. This means that fewer new futures contracts were opened, and more were closed or liquidated.

When open interest drops, it signals that traders are less active or confident in the current market trend. Traders use futures to bet on price movements with leverage. A fall in open interest means they are pulling back.

Despite the drop in futures participation, the Bitcoin funding rate stayed positive at 0.0090%, which means traders were still paying extra to hold long positions. This usually happens when more traders expect the price to rise, but it does not mean the overall market is active.

Data from Deribit showed that more traders held Bitcoin call options than put options on April 9. A call option lets someone buy Bitcoin at a fixed price later. A put option lets someone sell Bitcoin at a fixed price later.

When there are more call options than puts, it often means traders think the price might go up. Even though fewer people are trading Bitcoin futures, this change in options shows that some traders are still preparing for a price rise or protecting their positions just in case.

Bitcoin’s weekend breakdown highlights how its always-open market structure creates different behavior from stocks.

BTC Reacts Differently Than Stocks Amid Liquidity Shifts, Say Lai and Hayes

Lennix Lai, Chief Commercial Officer at OKX, said Bitcoin’s recent price action shows a shifting relationship with traditional financial markets. After Donald Trump’s April 2 tariff announcement, the Nasdaq dropped 11%, but Bitcoin only fell 6%. Lai pointed to this difference as an early sign of divergence between Bitcoin and equities.

However, Lai emphasized that Bitcoin’s price still depends on global liquidity conditions. “Though I see early signs of divergence,” he said, “Bitcoin remains fundamentally tied to global liquidity conditions, warranting caution amid potential market stresses.” He added that Bitcoin’s significance is not limited to price changes. It is also gaining recognition as a strategic reserve asset used for diversification during times of market instability.

Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX and Chief Investment Officer at Maelstrom, gave a similar view. He said Bitcoin reacts primarily to changes in the expected supply of fiat currency, not stock movements.

“Bitcoin trades solely based on the market expectation for the future supply of fiat,”

Hayes wrote on his Substack blog The BBC.

Arthur Hayes explained that Bitcoin’s price often rises when central banks, especially the U.S. Federal Reserve, increase the money supply. He linked this to quantitative easing (QE)—a policy where the Fed buys assets like government bonds to inject cash into the economy.

QE increases liquidity and lowers interest rates, making investors turn to assets like BTC. Hayes said Bitcoin responds more to these liquidity shifts than to stock market trends, which explains its different behavior during economic shocks.

Both experts agree that Bitcoin is not yet fully separated from broader market pressures but follows a different set of drivers—especially fiat liquidity conditions.