Bitcoin Loses Summer Gains as Ether Attracts Most Capital
Bitcoin (BTC) struggled in August, slipping roughly 8% from its mid-month peak above $124,000 to just over $108,000, wiping out its summer rally and landing slightly below its Memorial Day level of $109,500.
Ether (ETH) outperformed, climbing 14% over the same period, driven by large institutional inflows into ETH treasury companies and spot ETFs. According to Bloomberg, ETH ETFs attracted $4 billion in August, compared to $629 million for BTC ETFs. With ether’s market cap at $500 billion — about a quarter of bitcoin’s $2.1 trillion — the impact of these inflows was amplified.
August highlighted the limited pool of capital in crypto, with ether capturing most investment while bitcoin faced broad selling pressure, despite dovish signals from the Federal Reserve and strong ETF interest.
Historically, September is often weaker for bitcoin, but the sample size is small, and the market has evolved considerably since early years, suggesting caution when relying on seasonal trends.
Bottom Line: Capital flows favored ether in August, leaving bitcoin under pressure, though ETF support and macro factors could provide stability heading into September.
