Strategy Watch #4

Crypto Insight Summary: Glassnode published Strategy Watch #4 on May 22, 2026, its monthly analysis of institutional digital asset fund performance, capital flows, and allocation trends. Bitcoin capital flows nearly recovered to neutral in April, improving from -$6.9B to -$0.7B, while stablecoin inflows surged from +$1.8B to +$5.4B, and Ethereum remained in persistent net outflow at -$1.6B. Bitcoin ETF and DAT flows stayed positive, closing at +26.3k BTC and +58.8k BTC respectively, while Ethereum ETF flows staged a notable turnaround, flipping from -135k ETH in early April to +140.6k ETH by month-end, with DAT flows reaching +408.6k ETH. Ethereum DeFi TVL deteriorated sharply, with total ETH locked falling from ~$54B to ~$44.9B and outflows peaking at -$11.3B around April 25, suggesting the March stabilization was fragile. CME basis yields for both BTC and ETH turned deeply negative by month-end at -$21.2M and -$6.0M respectively, indicating persistent futures backwardation that removed the economic basis for cash-and-carry strategies. Every sub-strategy posted gains in April, a level of cross-strategy alignment not seen in recent memory. On-chain vault Crypto Insight Analysis: Direction: Bullish BTC / Bullish ETH Impact: Major Impact Horizon: Mid-term (1-8 weeks) Reasoning: Significant capital inflows and ETF flows for BTC/ETH signal strong institutional demand.