Bitcoin ETFs Break Records as Altcoins XRP, HBAR, ALGO Await New Investments

This week, Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded over $2 billion in inflows as BTC soared to a new all-time high of $111,814.

On May 22 alone, Bitcoin ETF inflows reached $934 million, with BlackRock’s IBIT fund remaining in the top spot with over $3 billion in trading volume.

Bitcoin’s all-time high comes as most altcoins await their turn in the spotlight, as Bitcoin steals the majority of inflows and volume.

Bitcoin ETFs mark $2B inflows in one week as altcoins take backseat

Bitcoin reached a new all-time high of $111,814 on May 22. That same day, $934 million inflows entered Bitcoin ETFs as institutional investors stocked up on BTC.

Large investment firms such as Metaplanet, a Bitcoin investment firm in Japan, and Michael Saylor’s Strategy also stocked up on Bitcoin recently. 

On May 19, Metaplanet acquired an additional 1004 Bitcoin, bringing the firm’s total Bitcoin holdings to 7,800, worth around $865 million. 

Micharl Saylor has told investors to buy Bitcoin, even if it’s trading at all-time highs. Strategy has reached an unrealized profit holding of $22.7 billion, making it the most successful Bitcoin investment firms in the world.

Following in Strategy’s footsteps is the country of El Salvador, whose president, Nayib Bukele, has been buying 1 BTC a day for the country’s reserves. 

Altcoins await fresh investments while Bitcoin takes spotlight

While Bitcoin tethers to new all-time highs, altcoins like XRP, HBAR, and ALGO have stayed on the down low. Sui network recently passed DeFi transactions due to a $223 million exploit on Cetus Protocol.

Meanwhile, on Algorand, FIFA Collect, a popular NFT marketplace for football fans, migrated from the ALGO network to Avalanche on their own FIFA blockchain network. 

Ripple’s XRP token has maintained a sideways trading range around $2.35 while Hedera Hashgraph has maintained a price point around $0.20.

Hyperliquid is a standout token this week, managing to surge 32% over the last 7 days, taking the token to a new all-time high of $37.24 on May 23, 2025. 

Many investors believe altcoins are overdue for a major surge, with altseason still on the horizon for many traders.

Some investors believe altseason will come from institutional inflows and not the usual retail hype seen in previous bull runs.