Traders are turning to aggressive ETF strategies amid market uncertainty, seeking both leverage and safety in a turbulent financial environment. Data from Bloomberg Intelligence reveals record inflows into leveraged long ETFs that aim to amplify the performance of volatile assets like stocks and cryptocurrencies, alongside funds holding cash and gold as protective hedges. 2025 saw a surge of $6 billion in net flows into leveraged long ETFs, with around $4 billion flowing into cash and gold-based funds, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. “[T]here’s basically record flows going into leveraged long ETFs but also cash and gold ETFs as people buy the dip and hedge the dip at the same time,” said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Eric Balchunas in an April 23 post on the X platform. The surge comes amidst increased market volatility, triggered by US President Trump’s announcement of sweeping tariffs. The S&P 500 has experienced a decline of roughly 5%, while Bitcoin (BTC) remains relatively resilient. Following the tariffs, Bitcoin’s spot price surged past $90,000 for the first time in six weeks. This prompted near-a billion dollars worth of Bitcoin ETF inflows, as per Google Finance. Despite its association with “digital gold,” Bitcoin’s correlation to traditional safe haven assets like gold is relatively weak. A report by Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, observed that Bitcoin’s relationship with equities remains strong while gold continues to be a favored safe haven asset. The increased volatility has spurred exchanges to capitalize on derivatives, such as futures contracts, further amplifying market movements.