Crypto Surpasses AI Stocks as Investors Flood into Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs
The recent market cycle has seen AI stocks falter while crypto continues to shine. Despite being one of Wall Street's hottest sectors, AI technology stocks have struggled as investors pulled in massive amounts of money earlier this year.
Gold and silver also saw a decline, up 14.31% and 19.26% respectively. Meanwhile, crypto has attracted a new wave of liquidity and institutional interest precisely when stock momentum has started to stall.
The US spot Bitcoin ETFs pulled in around $1.6 billion between August 17-21, marking the strongest weekly inflow of 2026 so far. Thursday alone saw an influx of approximately $606 million. Ethereum is experiencing a similar trend with spot Ether ETFs recording about $221 million on August 20.
The divergence in performance between crypto and stocks doesn't necessarily indicate a shift from one asset class to another. Instead, it suggests that crypto has stronger drivers at the moment, driven by stronger ETF demand and better liquidity.