Bloomberg Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas threw a bit of cold water on the excitement surrounding Hong Kong's approval on Monday of applications for spot bitcoin and ether exchange-traded funds.

Since spot bitcoin ETFs started trading in the U.S. in January, the funds collectively have generated more than $200 billion in trading volumes. The funds issued by financial giants like BlackRock and Fidelity, which started with zero assets under management, have attracted about $30 billion in fresh capital combined.

Balchunas took to X on Monday in an effort set expectations about the Hong Kong market. "Don't expect a lot of flows ... we think they'll be lucky to get $500 million," he said, adding that the Hong Kong ETF market is "tiny" and "Chinese locals cannot buy these, at least …