Written by William Suberg⁠, Staff Writer. Reviewed by Allen Scott⁠, Staff Editor.

Bitcoin price hits $76K, lowest since April after $1B ETF net outflow

MarketsPublishedMay 18, 2026

Bitcoin analysis blamed a lack of institutional demand as BTC price action returned to $76,000, erasing all of its May gains.

Bitcoin (BTC) hit new May lows after Monday’s Wall Street open as a $1 billion ETF outflow added to bulls' woes.

Key points:

Bitcoin returns to the $76,000 mark for the first time since April, wiping weeks of gains.
Weak ETF flows cause speculation that new local lows are due for BTC/USD.
A rebound in USD/JPY rekindles expectations of central bank intervention.

Bitcoin price wipes entirety of May gains

Data from TradingView showed BTC/USD dropping to $76,011 on Bitstamp — its lowest since April 30.

BTC/USD one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Erasing all its May gains, the pair fell further from key support trend lines, notably the 21-week exponential moving average (EMA) and bull market support band. Now, “gaps” in CME Group’s Bitcoin futures market were on the radar as short-term price targets.

“$BTC Closed the $78K CME gap from 2 weeks ago which was sitting below. But it now opened a new one this weekend at ~$79K above,” trader Daan Crypto Trades wrote in his latest analysis on X.

“Besides that one, there's also the gap at $84K and $67K.”

CME Bitcoin futures one-hour chart. Source: Daan Crypto Trades/X

Others pointed to a loss of demand momentum as a reason for the BTC price U-turn over the past week.

In its latest market research bulletin, crypto exchange Bitfinex highlighted flows to and from the US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

“On-chain data also points to fading momentum beneath the surface. While monthly capital inflows remain positive at $2.8 billion, the pace remains well below the $10 billion levels typically associated with strong bull market continuation phases,” it wrote.

“The divergence suggests that, despite the earlier recovery toward $82,000, institutional conviction remains insufficient to absorb ongoing macroeconomic shocks and rate volatility.”

BTC/USD four-hour chart (screenshot). Source: Bitfinex

Trader Mikybull Crypto added that large ETF outflows “are usually followed by a local bottom.”

Last week’s netflows totaled more than $1 billion, per data from UK-based investment company Farside Investors.

US spot Bitcoin ETF netflows (screenshot). Source: Farside Investors

Japanese yen nears key dollar ceiling

Continuing, trading company QCP Capital added another macro headwind for crypto bulls.

The Japanese yen carry trade — a source of price pressure over the past year — returned to the spotlight as USD/JPY approached the psychologically significant 160 level.

“These levels in yields and USD/JPY often function as political and psychological lines in the sand, where rising market stress increases the probability of a policy response or intervention,” QCP wrote in its latest Market Color update.

USD/JPY chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Like others, QCP also referenced surging US bond yields as a condition for intervention by government, with more risk-asset volatility coming as a result.

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