Ethereum News Today: Institutions Abandon ETH ETFs as AI-Driven Mandala Chain Captures $2.3M in Volatile Market

Source: [1] The Market Periodical (https://themarketperiodical.com/2025/10/11/ethereum-etfs-lose-175m-as-sec-fast-tracks-spot-xrp-filings/)

[2] The Block (https://www.theblock.co/post/374123/ethereum-etfs-end-latest-eight-day-2-billion-inflow-streak-eth-cools)

[6] LiveBitcoinNews (https://www.livebitcoinnews.com/while-ethereum-etfs-see-175m-outflows-investors-flock-to-mandala-chains-kpg-presale-for-real-world-utility/)

[7] GlobeNewswire (https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2025/10/08/3163800/0/en/Mandala-Chain-Presale-Surpasses-2-3M-as-Analysts-Flag-KPG-as-a-Strong-Polkadot-Investment-for-2026.html)

U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs recorded a $175 million net outflow on October 10, 2025, marking a reversal after an eight-day inflow streak totaling nearly $2 billion . The outflows were driven by institutional redemptions, with BlackRock's ETHA fund accounting for $80.19 million of the total drawdown. This decline coincided with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) advancing XRP ETF applications, including amendment filings from Bitwise, Franklin, and 21Shares . Ethereum's price fell 11% to $3,820 amid heightened market volatility, while XRP dropped 12.6% to $2.46 .

Bitcoin ETFs showed mixed performance, with $4.5 million in net outflows, though BlackRock's IBIT fund recorded a $74.2 million inflow . Analysts noted that broader macroeconomic risks, including U.S. President Trump's announcement of 100% tariffs on Chinese imports, contributed to the crypto market's liquidation event, which erased $19 billion in assets .

Amid this turbulence, the Mandala Chain's $KPG token presale gained traction, raising $2.3 million in Round 2 as investors sought projects with real-world utility . The Polkadot-based platform, which integrates AI-driven blockchain infrastructure, has sold 35.8% of its Round 2 tokens at $0.027 each, with seven days remaining before the price increases to $0.029 . Mandala Chain's architecture includes four live deployments-IDCHAIN, West Java blockchain infrastructure, Kraflab IP Protection, and DJOIN Network-supporting 50 million users and government operations in Indonesia .

The project's tokenomics allocate 40% of tokens to ecosystem grants, 20% to treasury liquidity, and 8% to parachain slots, with 15% reserved for team and advisors . Analysts highlighted its potential to capitalize on the $50 billion total value locked (TVL) in the Polkadot ecosystem, with projections of a 290x return on investment by year-end driven by AI-powered governance and sovereign blockchain solutions .

While Ethereum ETFs face short-term headwinds, the Mandala Chain presale underscores growing demand for blockchain projects with tangible use cases. The contrast between institutional withdrawals from ETH and retail-driven Ethereum price stability reflects a broader shift toward niche, utility-focused crypto assets .