Bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETFs), as well as other Bitcoin institutional product offerings, may be shaping a cryptoethos at the heart of Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision. According to onchain data, Bitcoin self-custody has been steadily declining since January 2024 — the same month Bitcoin spot ETFs were approved.
After almost 15 years of rapid growth, creation Bitcoin (New)BTCAddresses is slowing, whereas active addresses dropped dramatically from around 1 million addresses in January 2024 down to about 650,000 addresses in June. These levels are the lowest since 2019.
“Since spot ETFs became available the growth rate of self-custody users has been in decline,” said Willy Woo is a Willy X analyst.
Data shows a significant behavioral change as investors choose institutional custody options like ETFs over managing their private wallets.
As more and more people enter the crypto world via BTC, the trend will continue. Others, on the other hand, see it as a move away from Bitcoin’s origins and individual sovereignty.
“ETFs didn’t steal users from cold storage… They opened the market to those who were locked behind compliance walls,” Become a member of the community wrote On X.
Bitcoin ETFs: The convenience and rise of Bitcoin ETFs
Bitcoin reached a new level with the launch of Bitcoin ETFs. Companies like BlackRock Fidelity Grayscale launched these products.
ETFs offered institutional-grade, regulated access to cryptocurrency for investors, without the need to maintain wallets, exchanges, or private keys. These funds offered tax benefits and secure custody along with traditional brokerage platform ease.
From the very beginning, there was a strong demand for Bitcoin ETFs. In the first 18-month period, Bitcoin spot ETFs experienced around $50 billion in net inflowsBlackRock IBIT is the leader with $53 billion. IBIT grew to $53 billion by July 18th, 2025. $83 billion in assets under managementIt tripled in 200 days. The company now has over 700,000 BTC – nearly 100,000 BTC more than Fidelity FBTC.
The following is a list of Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas, IBIT became the fastest ETF in history to reach $80 billion, achieving the milestone in 374 days, far ahead of the previous record — 1,814 days — set by Vanguard’s VOO.
Related: Metaplanet vs. Semler Scientific: The race to become Bitcoin’s biggest corporate whale
Expanding institutional adoption
Bitcoin ETFs, however, are not the only gateways to BTC. In recent years, Bitcoin treasury companies — businesses or investment vehicles that hold Bitcoin on their balance sheets as a strategic reserve asset — have evolved from a handful of high-conviction players like Strategy and Tesla into a broader institutional movement.
BTC is held by a number of companies that are publicly traded. increased to 125 by the end of Q2 2025 — a 58% surge from the previous quarter. As of mid‑2025, over 250 organizationsBTC is now included on the balance sheets of public and private companies as well as ETFs, pension funds, and ETFs.
Bitcoin treasury firms offer holders a way to indirectly invest without dealing with exchanges or managing private keys. They eliminate the need to interact directly with exchanges or self-manage keys, but provide institutional grade custody and regulatory oversight.
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Source: cointelegraph.com
