Crypto14 October, 20262 min read
Bitcoin ETF Inflows Rise After Coldcard Hack, With Eric Balchunas Citing Daily IBIT Gains
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Bitcoin ETF daily inflows accelerated in the past week following the Coldcard hack. Eric Balchunas cites daily IBIT gains as support for increased inflows.
ETF inflows after Coldcard
Bitcoin spot ETF inflows rose over the past week after the Coldcard wallet hack, with Eric Balchunas saying the streak of daily inflows coincided with the exploit. Balchunas said the BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB), the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), and the Defiance Daily Target 2X Long MSTR ETF (MSBT) recorded inflows on every business day since the weekend exploit, totaling roughly $620 million.
TRM Labs said the Coldcard exploit drained more than $116 million in Bitcoin from over 5,200 wallet addresses, according to blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs. Balchunas said, "I’m not saying it’s connected, I just don’t know," and he added, "[Although] in the long run I can’t imagine there aren’t some that migrate."
Self-custody risks debated
Changpeng "CZ" Zhao argued that storing crypto on centralized exchanges could now be "statistically safer" than self-custody, citing data from analyst Willy Woo. Zhao said, "Hack data are easier to collect on the CEX side, usually big news," and he added, "It’s harder on the self-custody side, where hacks, lost coins, etc., often go unreported," in the debate over operational risk.
The Coldcard hack renewed concerns that even hardware wallet users can be exposed to firmware failures and software vulnerabilities, according to the TradingView account of the discussion. The TradingView report also linked the debate to AI-assisted cyberattacks, noting that on Monday the Bitcoin exchange Boltz suspended its noncustodial bridge due to a steady rise in AI-assisted exploits that attackers can use to identify and exploit vulnerabilities faster than teams can patch them.
BlackRock crypto assets rebound
BlackRock said its crypto ETF assets surged 63% to $79.6 billion, while the firm said holdings remained 23% below year-ago levels. BlackRock reported that its digital asset funds attracted $7.9 billion in third-quarter inflows, reversing roughly $2.2 billion in outflows during the first half of 2026.
The Reuters account said rising crypto prices accounted for $22.9 billion of the $30.8 billion increase in assets under management during the quarter, and it said BlackRock earned $39 million in quarterly fees and securities lending revenue from its digital asset products. The Reuters report also said investors added $6.3 billion over the past 12 months, but declines in market value erased $30.6 billion over the same period, leaving BlackRock’s digital asset holdings 23% below the nearly $104 billion it managed a year ago.