Crypto Fund Flows Snap 19-Week Win Streak As Argentina's Milei Faces Memecoin Fallout
Crypto fund flows swing negative as Argentina President Milei faces crypto blowback
By: Zack Guzman
February 18, 2025
We’re kicking off another week with crypto backtracking, but today’s focus isn’t just on price action.
Over the weekend, Argentina’s President Javier Milei found himself at the center of a token scandal, after the Viva La Libertad project he endorsed stumbled out of the gate and then cratered 90% as Milei deleted his original tweet and distanced himself from the project.
On today's news recap we were joined by Abra CEO and Founder Bill Barhydt for his insights on where the market is heading, why stablecoins could be the biggest theme of the year, and a plea to all other politicians around the world: "Politicians, please stay away from these damn memecoins." Let's dig in...
Bitcoin’s Consolidation and ETF Trends
Bitcoin’s recent run-up from $50,000 in September to today’s mid-$90,000 range has been nothing short of impressive.
But as Bill pointed out, markets don’t just go up and to the right forever. This consolidation phase? Classic Bitcoin behavior. According to CoinShares, crypto investment products broke 19 straight weeks of inflows last week with $415 million in outflows.
Either way, Barhydt remains bullish, particularly as institutional players like Abu Dhabi’s wealth fund enter the game with a $460 million Bitcoin ETF purchase. If sovereign wealth funds start buying in regularly, that’s when things could really accelerate.
The ETH Setup No One’s Talking About
Bitcoin dominance is still sitting above 60%, but that might not last much longer. Ethereum has been lagging for the better part of two years, but if history is any indication, it’s about to wake up.
The biggest reason? Something we flagged back in December — as the SEC prepares to potentially green light staking via Ethereum ETFs. Bill sees this as a game-changer, unlocking new institutional demand and potentially catching short sellers flat-footed. Combine that with growing liquidity in the markets and an overall shift towards altcoins, and we could be setting up for a major ETH breakout.
The last time I tweeted about an $ETH bottom, it rallied 23% in a month
— Zack Guzmán (@zGuz) February 13, 2025
I usually don't call bottoms, but I'd call another one here
Here's why people are missing a HUGE bullish trigger as the SEC looks poised to approve ETH Staking via ETFs for the first time 🧵⬇️ pic.twitter.com/q3hCGzxwgE
Milei’s Meme Coin Mess
Speaking of narratives that aren’t going away — Argentina’s President Javier Milei is now facing fraud accusations after promoting a token that pumped and dumped in record time.
Over the weekend, we saw the familiar cycle: A token contract posted by a President, a big price spike, then an immediate collapse. President Milei deleted his initial post, saying he wasn't sure of all the details, but addressed the Argentina press in an interview defending his actions. He said people who bought the token knew the risks they were taking.
The space is already fighting an uphill battle for legitimacy, and when world leaders get caught up in shady token launches, it does far more harm than good. It appears Millei has learned his lesson to be more careful with whom he chooses to work with, but for now the blowback against memecoins appears to be dinging Solana — with the token falling 6%.
Abra’s Playbook for Long-Term Crypto Holders
Barhydt also broke down what Abra is building and why their lending model is designed for Bitcoin and Ethereum holders who want access to liquidity without selling.
Borrowing against crypto is nothing new, but Abra’s approach — where clients retain title to their assets — aims to fix many of the problems that led to the collapse of previous lending platforms like BlockFi and Celsius. With institutions increasingly looking to play the MicroStrategy game, Abra is positioning itself as a key player in crypto-backed financial services.
The Takeaway
Bitcoin’s grinding, ETH could be on the verge of a major move, and politicians are once again proving they shouldn’t be anywhere near memecoins. Meanwhile, stablecoins and crypto-backed lending are shaping up to be massive growth areas in 2025. As always, we’ll be tracking all of it at Coinage.
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