Bitcoin, Ethereum See Outflows as Capital Shifts Into Stablecoins

Capital rotated out of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) over the past several hours, with a notable share parking in stablecoins—especially Tether (USDT)—in a sign traders may be shifting into a more defensive, ‘wait-and-see’ stance.

According to Cryptometer data tracked as of 3:00 p.m. ET on May 13, flows over the prior five hours showed net outflows of about $21.52 million from Ethereum (ETH) and $19.45 million from Bitcoin (BTC). Additional selling pressure was recorded in Solana (SOL) with roughly $4.36 million in outflows, alongside XRP (XRP) at $3.01 million and Sui (SUI) at $1.38 million.

The clearest destination for that capital was stablecoins. USDT absorbed approximately $31.41 million, while USD Coin (USDC) drew around $4.5 million. The shift toward stablecoins typically reflects traders locking in gains, reducing volatility exposure, or preparing liquidity for redeployment into higher-beta assets once conditions stabilize.

At the same time, small but measurable fiat inflows entered the crypto market. Cryptometer recorded about $5.08 million moving in from U.S. dollar (USD) balances and approximately $2.04 million from Brazilian real (BRL) balances during the same window. The USD inflow dispersed into several assets including Solana (SOL), Dogecoin (DOGE), and USD1, while the BRL flow was concentrated largely into USDT—a pattern consistent with stablecoins acting as an on-ramp and settlement layer in LATAM corridors.

On a gross-flow basis, around $7.85 million worth of USDT was redistributed across multiple tokens, with Zcash (ZEC) taking the largest share. DOGE and Tron (TRX) also captured meaningful portions of that USDT allocation. Meanwhile, roughly $2.22 million worth of Ethereum (ETH) was split into WBETH and BNB (BNB), suggesting some rotation into yield- or exchange-linked exposures rather than a blanket risk-off move.

The top observed inflow recipients during the five-hour period were Zcash (ZEC) at about $2.42 million, Dogecoin (DOGE) at $2.12 million, and Solana (SOL) at $1.86 million. Other notable inflows included WBETH at $1.61 million, BNB (BNB) at $1.32 million, Tron (TRX) at roughly $984,000, and USD1 at around $732,000.

Beyond stablecoin parking, the data also pointed to profit-taking back into fiat. Approximately $20.04 million flowed into U.S. dollar (USD) balances, while about $3.09 million moved into South Korean won (KRW). In aggregate, the mix of stablecoin accumulation and fiat realization suggests a market temporarily prioritizing ‘liquidity’ over directional conviction, even as pockets of demand emerge in select altcoins.