Today in crypto, Spot Bitcoin ETFs posted $296.18 million in weekly outflows, Morgan Stanley sets a 0.14% fee for its spot Bitcoin ETF, potentially forcing competitors to cut fees to stay competitive. Meanwhile, US lawmakers release discussion draft outlining new crypto tax rules that exclude a Bitcoin de minimis exemption.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs break 4-week inflow streak as capital avoids ‘directional risk’
Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) snapped a four-week inflow streak, posting $296.18 million in net outflows for the week ending Friday.
The reversal follows a sustained run of inflows totaling more than $2.2 billion across four consecutive weeks, including $787.31 million, $568.45 million and $767.33 million in early March, before slowing to $95.18 million in the prior week, according to SoSoValue data.
The weekly outflow followed back-to-back daily withdrawals on Thursday and Friday totaling more than $396 million, including a $225.48 million outflow on Friday alone, their biggest day of redemptions since March 3, when they posted $348 million in outflows.
Notably, cumulative net inflows into spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs stand at $55.93 billion, while total net assets have slipped to $84.77 billion from over $90 billion a week earlier. Trading activity also moderated, with weekly volume falling to $14.26 billion from $25.87 billion earlier in March.
Morgan Stanley sets 0.14% Bitcoin ETF fee, lowest in market if approved
Investment bank Morgan Stanley is seeking to launch its spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund with a 0.14% fee, which would make it the cheapest in the US market and potentially force rivals to cut fees to stay competitive.
The 0.14% fee, proposed in Morgan Stanley’s latest S-1 registration statement on Friday, would be one basis point below the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF (BTC), currently the cheapest in the US market, and 11 basis points below the BlackRock-issued iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT).
“Big move here. They are not messing around,” Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said, predicting that the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust (MSBT) is “likely to launch in early April.”
Fellow Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said the low fee means that none of Morgan Stanley’s roughly 16,000 financial advisors — which manage $6.2 trillion in client assets — would feel conflicted in recommending the product to its clients.
Given that spot Bitcoin ETFs track the price movements of Bitcoin (BTC), Morgan Stanley’s ultra-low fee could spark a fresh fee war in the $83 billion market, putting immediate pressure on rivals to cut costs or risk losing assets.
US lawmakers advance crypto tax plan without Bitcoin exemption
US lawmakers have released a discussion draft of the Digital Asset PARITY Act, outlining new crypto tax rules that notably exclude a Bitcoin de minimis exemption. Instead, the proposal introduces limited tax relief for certain dollar-pegged stablecoin transactions under $200 and clarifies that income from staking, lending and validator activity would be taxed annually based on fair market value.
The draft, which has not yet been introduced in Congress, is intended to kick off debate around crypto taxation as policymakers push to integrate digital assets into existing financial rules.
The proposal has already drawn criticism from parts of the crypto community, particularly Bitcoin advocates, who argue the bill prioritizes stablecoins over BTC. The move comes amid broader US efforts to define crypto market structure, taxation and regulatory oversight.
