Bitcoin ETFs pull in $2.4 billion as retail gives up on single stocks

Retail investors are backing away from stocks. Crypto is getting a different reception.

Individual investors put just $1 billion into single stocks over the past 20 trading days, The Kobeissi Letter said in an X post on Sept. 26. That's close to the smallest 20-day total in at least two years, and roughly 95% below the about $20 billion they bought over a similar stretch in April 2025.

"Retail investors are trading less," Kobeissi wrote.

The gauge has been sliding for months. In early August, it dipped below zero, meaning individual investors were net sellers of single stocks for the first time since at least October 2024.

Crypto trading picks up

Crypto funds have moved the other way. As per SoSoValue, the U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs pulled in about $2.39 billion in the week ended Sept. 25, their strongest week since October 2025. The funds took in money on all five trading days.

Bitcoin was trading at $83,217.28 at the time of writing.

Spot XRP ETFs added $75.59 million over the same week, with inflows on four of the five trading days, led by $22.65 million on Sept. 25.

XRP was trading at $1.49 at the time of writing.

Those flows include large investors as well as individuals, so they don't show retail demand on their own.