Bitcoin traded near $81,000 on Monday after a week that saw it fall from about $83,800 to a low near $80,100, while digital asset investment products recorded $593.3 million in net outflows. The same week, MSCI confirmed a new screen for “non-operating” companies that will end the temporary shield for firms holding more than half their assets in digital assets, a rule that could force index funds to sell shares of crypto-heavy treasuries.
The ETF bleed
Ethereum-focused funds accounted for the bulk of the damage, losing $320.1 million, while Bitcoin products shed $228.4 million. Ether opened the week at $2,489, bottomed at $2,336 on Sunday and was changing hands near $2,403, a 3.4% weekly decline. XRP fell 4.7% and Solana lost 3.5% over the same stretch.
Bitcoin's market share held between 59.7% and 60.4% as total crypto market capitalization settled near $2.76 trillion, down 2.1% on the week. The fear and greed index cooled from 56 to a neutral 49 — not panic, but not the optimism that greeted October's opening.
MSCI's November 30 deadline
The index provider confirmed it will apply the new screen starting November 30, with a final list of affected companies due November 11. Firms that keep more than half their assets in digital assets will no longer qualify for the temporary reprieve MSCI granted earlier. Reports point to Strategy and Metaplanet as potentially affected. JPMorgan estimates Strategy alone could see up to $2.8 billion in outflows if index funds are forced to rebalance. Michael Saylor called the rule discriminatory.
Strategy isn't standing still. The company added 267 BTC last week, lifting its holdings to 848,517 BTC. Strive acquired 4,045 BTC, and BitMine bought 12,535 ETH, pushing its stash beyond 6 million ETH. The buying hasn't stopped even as the index rule looms — treasury firms are doubling down rather than trimming.
Solana's Alpenglow goes live
Anza scheduled Solana's Alpenglow upgrade for October 21. The change is expected to cut finality from about 12.8 seconds to roughly 150 milliseconds — a speed improvement that matters for trading and payments use cases. Solana's token still lost 3.5% on the week, but the technical work is moving ahead regardless of price action.
BlackRock's mixed quarter
BlackRock's crypto ETF assets grew 63% in the third quarter to $79.6 billion, though that figure remains 23% below where it stood a year ago. The asset manager also filed for an iShares Bitcoin Managed Protect ETF, which would target upside exposure to IBIT with downside cushioning. It's a product designed for investors who want bitcoin's returns without the full drawdown — a sign BlackRock expects demand for guarded exposure to keep growing.
Regulatory pieces move
The European Banking Authority designated Circle's USDC as the first “significant” e-money token under MiCA, placing it under direct supervision from November 12. JPMorgan extended its JPM Coin deposit token to Ethereum, and Mastercard unveiled a multi-currency account for fiat and stablecoins built on BVNK infrastructure, which it acquired for about $1.8 billion. Stablecoin payments reached roughly $482 billion in the first nine months of the year, up 45% from the same period last year, according to Allium data.
In Washington, White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt is departing with no replacement named. The CLARITY Act has been idle since failing a 49–50 cloture vote on September 15, and Congress is out until after the November 3 midterms. The legislative calendar is empty on crypto, and the administration's point person is leaving.
The next concrete date is November 11, when MSCI publishes its final list of affected companies. Until then, treasury firms and their shareholders are waiting to see which names make the cut — and whether the forced selling that JPMorgan warns about actually materializes.
