Sentiment around Bitcoin and the wider cryptocurrency market continues to improve, along with the BTC price. This is being reflected in the European derivatives markets and indeed in the ETF / ETC market of listed funds.
Spectrum Markets, the pan-European trading venue for securitised derivatives, has published its SERIX sentiment data for European retail investors for June, revealing retail investor sentiment towards cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ether has risen consistently since the index hit its lowest point in January 2023.
The SERIX value indicates retail investor sentiment, with a number above 100 marking bullish sentiment, and a number below 100 indicating bearish sentiment. The SERIX sentiment index for Bitcoin hit 110 points in June, the highest level since the start of this year. This bullish sentiment from European retail investors can also be seen in improving sentiment towards Ether, which reached 113 in June.
In recent months the price for Bitcoin has risen from around $16,000 in January, to over $30,000 in June, whereas Ether’s price rose from roughly $1,200 to above $1,900 in the same period.
“Interest in cryptocurrencies continues to grow, though their price volatility means investors are increasingly exploring different ways of gaining differentiated exposure to the asset class, including through derivatives,” explains Michael Hall, Head of Distribution at Spectrum. “Our choice to offer this within a regulated environment, being the first to do so on-venue on a 24/5 basis, has also been welcomed by European retail investors that value trading on a regulated trading venue.
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Hall said he expected this momentum to continue, supported by more and more diverse products coming onto the market. The fact that a much clearer regulatory regime for digital and crypto-assets is emerging in Europe with the European Council adopting new rules on markets in crypto-assets, in particular MiCAR, is another welcome development that will give further reassurance to investors in this asset class.
The volumes of cryptocurrency-based derivatives traded through Spectrum remains relatively small when stacked against total retail volumes: 84.1% of the traded derivatives were on indices, 10.5% on currency pairs, 3.4% on commodities, 1.7% on equities and only 0.3% on cryptocurrencies, with the top three traded underlying markets being DAX 40 (31.5%), NASDAQ 100 (19.5%), and S&P 500 (18.7%).
Digital assets ETPs seeing “upward trend” in AUM
Derivatives trading aside, many investors are also going into cryptocurrency markets using ETFs, many of which in turn are using crypto futures, but have the advantage of being traded on stock exchanges across Europe.
Fineqia International, a digital asset and fintech investment business, this week revealed a 76% growth globally in total Assets Under Management (AUM) in digital assets ETPs in the year-to-date (YTD) period amid renewed interest by investors.
The AUM increase was at a 52% premium to the underlying value of digital assets, which grew slower at 50% since the beginning of the year. This can be attributed to the price rise of the main digital asset that underpins ETPs, i.e., Bitcoin , vis-à-vis smaller alternative coins and as well to strong capital inflows into these listed products during the month of June.
“It’s an upward trend so far this year, and that’s attracting capital,” said Fineqia CEO Bundeep Singh Rangar. “Recent ETF filings in the US signals a revival of interest among financial institutions.”
Fidelity Investments, Invesco, VanEck, 21Shares and WisdomTree are among eight filings in the US for spot BTC Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), sparked by BlackRock Inc.’s submission to the SEC on June 15.
Total crypto AUM increased 10.7% to $35.1 billion from $31.7 billion in June. During the same time, the overall value of crypto assets grew 4.7%, to about $1.20 trillion from $1.14 trillion . On a quarterly basis, the total AUM increased 5.5% in Q2, after growing 67% in Q1. The overall value of crypto assets grew by 0.6% during Q2 after a 49% increase during Q1.
The Bitcoin price increased 12% in June, to $30,500 from $27,200 recorded on May 31 . The AUM of ETPs holding BTC correspondingly increased by 14%, reaching $24.8 billion from $21.7 billion . In Q2, both BTC price and AUM of ETPs holding BTC increased by 7%.
Ethereum ( ETH ) rose 3% in value to $1,930 from about $1,875. ETH denominated ETPs AUM dovetailed this rise, growing 3% to $7.8 billion on June 30 , compared with $7.6 billion a month earlier.
ETPs representing alternative coins increased 1%, and those with a basket of cryptocurrencies rose 7% in AUM.
