Preface

Welcome to the Asia Morning Update, where we provide a concise summary of significant developments during U.S. business hours along with updates on market trends and analyses. For an in-depth exploration of U.S. market activities, refer to CoinDesk's Crypto Daybook Americas. This report highlights the growing divergence between U.S. and German institutional sentiment towards Bitcoin, showcasing major movements in investment inflows and outflows.

Lazy bag

U.S.-listed funds have seen remarkable $3.74 billion in inflows, while Germany recorded an $85.7 million dip. Vanguard emerges as a key player, indirectly becoming an influential Bitcoin holder.

Main Body

According to CoinShares, U.S.-listed funds have dominated with $3.74 billion in inflows, highlighting the rising institutional appetite for cryptocurrencies in the United States. In stark contrast, Germany experienced an outflow of $85.7 million, indicating differing global market sentiments.

Vanguard, a prominent asset manager controlling $10 trillion, has shifted its stance on crypto investments. Despite earlier skepticism, as evident from its previous labeling of bitcoin as an “immature asset class,” it has become the largest shareholder in Michael Saylor’s MicroStrategy (MSTR) as noted by Presto Research. This marks a significant step as Vanguard now stands as the most substantial Bitcoin holder in traditional financial domains.

QCP Capital further underscores the ongoing enthusiasm in institutional investments, noting over $2 billion net inflows into spot BTC ETFs in the past week. Nevertheless, the derivatives market presents a complex picture. There is aggressive expansion in leveraged long positions, as shown by perpetual funding rates nearing 30%, and open interest has exceeded $43 billion—a milestone not reached since BTC regained $100k in January.

This surge raises cautionary tales reminiscent of February’s sudden $2 billion liquidation. “Froth is building,” warns QCP.

Notably, the benefits in gains are focused primarily on top-tier watch models like Daytona, Nautilus, and Royal Oak, while other brands lag behind with inventory under $5,000 remaining high. This underscores a “narrow and concentrated price recovery” fueled by high-end collectors and enhanced global risk appetite.

Both BTC and luxury watches thrive in “expansionary monetary environments,” yet the capital flow is uneven. Bitcoin stands out as a preferred high-beta asset due to institutional activity and 24/7 liquidity.

By late 2023, BTC and watches’ correlation, once driven by speculation and easy money during the pandemic, began to diverge with the advent of U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs. Bitcoin has since evolved into a macro-sensitive asset backed by institutions, while watches have reverted to their fashion niche.

Bitcoin momentarily reached $123,000 before stabilizing, with associated stocks showing moderate gains. Analysts maintain a cautious outlook, suggesting that the market remains distant from euphoria, with some projecting BTC's $2.5 trillion market cap could eventually match gold's $22 trillion. Meanwhile, ETH surged past $3,079 on strong volume, later consolidating around $3,011 with a typical breakout-pullback pattern. Gold experienced a minor decline of 0.1%, focused on trade dynamics and U.S. economic data, while silver soared to heights unseen since September 2011.

Across the Asia-Pacific realm, mixed market openings were observed Tuesday, with investors sidelining President Trump’s tariff maneuvers and refocusing on Chinese economic indicators. Japan’s Nikkei 225 maintained a steady course. RBC Capital Markets, however, slightly revised its 2025 S&P 500 target, contrasting with other firms expecting limited gains from current levels despite the index's rise beyond 6,280 as of mid-July.

Key Insights Table

Aspect	Description
U.S. Inflows	$3.74 billion funneled into U.S.-listed funds, highlighting strong institutional interest.
German Outflows	$85.7 million outflow from Germany, indicating different market sentiment.
Leveraged Positions	Aggressive growth in leveraged long positions with funding rates near 30%.
Price Recovery	Concentrated mainly in high-end watch models, driven by collector interest.

Sam Reynolds, a senior reporter in Asia, has been part of the CoinDesk team that earned the 2023 Gerald Loeb award for breaking news on FTX's collapse. Previously, he reported for Blockworks and analyzed semiconductors at IDC. The content reflects contributions from AI tools but has been edited for accuracy and verified by human oversight, as delineated in CoinDesk's AI Policy.

Last edited at：2025/7/15