Nearly $1 billion in bitcoin ETF inflows power bull case as Kelp hack fuels DeFi jitters
What you need to know for April 20, 2026
What to know:
- U.S.-listed spot ETFs pulled in $663 million on Friday, the most since Jan. 15., in a sign of strong institutional interest.
- Aave’s AAVE token dropped 1% as the protocol faces collateral damage from the weekend hack of KelpDAO. Still, the DeFi dominance rate, which measures the share of DeFi coins in the total crypto market value, held flat at around 3%.
- In the broader market, traders are building short positions, betting against a breakout. This could fuel a “short squeeze” if prices hold steady.
For a meaningful price rally to emerge, it’s a trend that needs to be sustained.
“ETF flow regimes provide a secondary read: Sustained inflows signal structural demand, while intermittent flows indicate tactical positioning, with consistency mattering more than magnitude,” said Timothy Misir, head of research at BRN, in an email.
Bitcoin is trading just above $75,000 after hitting highs above $78,000 on Friday, according to CoinDesk data. The prices has largely held steady over the past 24 hours. Similar patterns are evident in ether (ETH), XRP (XRP), Solana (SOL) and other major tokens.
DeFi platform Aave’s AAVE token has dropped 1% to $90 as the protocol faces collateral damage from the weekend hack of KelpDAO. The DeFi dominance rate, which measures the share of DeFi coins in the total crypto market value, has held flat at around 3%.
