IBIT Hits 5th in ETF Volume, Outranking GLD in the Debasement Trade
As seen on the 24/7 Wall St. homepage on September 18, 2026.
Bitcoin's biggest ETF outranking gold's at 5th in all-ETF volume is the clearest sign yet that the debasement trade is rotating toward crypto, and Balchunas says the volume leaderboard now doubles as the year's theme list.
$IBIT having one those days.. 5th in overall ETF volume with its BFF (Best Frenemy Forever) $GLD in 9th spot (normally GLD has higher rank, prob btc price up more today). Btw the Top 10 is a perfect snapshot of this year: VOO & Chill + AI Mania + Debasement Trade https://t.co/gXW5A4rlsz
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On September 18, Bloomberg Intelligence's Eric Balchunas flagged that IBIT, the iShares Bitcoin ETF, climbed to 5th place in overall ETF volume for the day, while GLD, its longtime gold rival, sat back in 9th. Balchunas noted that GLD normally holds a higher rank, attributing Bitcoin's edge to BTC price outperforming gold on the day.
The fact that a Bitcoin ETF is outpacing gold in volume on a given day is a concrete measure of where institutional and retail attention is pointing within the debasement trade. Both assets are typically grouped together as hedges against currency erosion, but the volume gap on this day suggests crypto is capturing the more active end of that trade.
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Balchunas framed the full top-10 ETF volume leaderboard as a clean summary of 2026's three dominant market themes: VOO and Chill, meaning broad passive index exposure; AI Mania, reflecting continued momentum in artificial intelligence names; and the Debasement Trade, where both IBIT and GLD sit. Seeing all three themes represented simultaneously in the day's most-traded ETFs underscores how distinct and durable each narrative has been this year.
For investors watching fund flows and volume as leading indicators, IBIT outranking GLD is worth noting. Volume leadership in the ETF space often reflects where new money is actively being put to work, making the ranking a real-time read on sentiment between the two debasement assets.