Institutional investors seem poised to focus on altcoins as the latest wave of cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) make their entry into the U.S. market, as noted by market analysts.
According to reports, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) received at least five new altcoin ETF filings in the first half of October, despite a government shutdown that is hindering progress.
As Leon Waidmann, head of research for Onchain, observed, “Every approval could open the door for a significant wave of institutional buying.”
“Altcoin ETF inflows are the next natural progression following the institutional interest demonstrated by Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs,” Waidmann told Cointelegraph. “This reflects growing regulatory confidence leading to capital movement.”
Ether ETFs Outperform Bitcoin in Q3
Spot Ether (ETH) ETFs secured $9.6 billion in inflows during Q3 of 2025, outperforming the $8.7 billion noted for spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs, as per data from SosoValue.
This transition indicates an increase in institutional interest in diverse crypto investments.
Waidmann expressed optimism that the emergence of altcoin ETFs may catalyze a prolonged period of institutional adoption and sustained inflows in the coming years.
“Institutions found Bitcoin through ETFs, and now they’re advancing towards Ethereum, with other altcoins likely to follow.”
Prominent investors, often referred to as “smart money” on Nansen’s blockchain intelligence platform, are also preparing for the anticipated approval of altcoin ETFs.
Uniswap (UNI), Aave (AAVE), and Chainlink (LINK) emerged as the three most frequently held tokens by these smart money traders on the previous Thursday, according to Nansen’s data.
However, some analysts worry that without BlackRock’s involvement with these altcoin ETFs, overall inflows may remain limited. In 2025, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF has drawn $28.1 billion, the only fund to record positive year-to-date inflows.
In the absence of BlackRock’s fund, the total Bitcoin ETFs have reported a cumulative net outflow of $1.27 billion for the year, as highlighted by K33’s head of research, Vetle Lunde.
This absent factor may constrain cumulative inflows for altcoin ETFs and the resultant potential benefits for the underlying tokens, Lunde elucidated.
