Over the past week, the cryptocurrency market experienced increased volatility and price weakness, driven by macroeconomic factors, liquidations, and risk-off sentiment.
Market Price Action
- Bitcoin (BTC) and other major cryptocurrencies faced sustained downward pressure throughout the week. BTC briefly traded below the $80,000 level — a price point not seen since April 2025 — amid a broader market pullback.
- Ethereum (ETH) and several major altcoins also traded lower, with sharp price moves occurring over the weekend and into early February.
- Macro uncertainty around monetary policy and geopolitical developments continued to weigh on risk assets, contributing to short-term volatility across crypto markets.
- Market participants are closely monitoring key support levels between approximately $75,000 and $70,000, while on-chain data suggests reduced liquidity and heightened sensitivity to leverage and positioning.
Ethereum price and broader context
- While the broader crypto market faced downside pressure last week, Ethereum (ETH)’s positioning among institutional and treasury participants continues to evolve.
- Bitmine Immersion Technologies — one of the largest public Ethereum treasury firms — increased its ETH holdings by approximately 40,302 ETH over the past week, marking one of its largest purchases so far in 2026.
- As of Jan 25, 2026, Bitmine held over 4.24 million ETH, with more than 2 million ETH staked, highlighting how large treasury players are combining accumulation with yield generation.
- More broadly, ETH staking has become a strategic component of treasury management, reflecting a shift away from passive holding toward active balance-sheet optimisation.
Liquidations and Risk Dynamics
Heavy leveraged liquidations contributed to the market downturn, as a large number of derivative positions were unwound during sharp price moves. Data from market trackers showed elevated liquidation volumes, reflecting heightened volatility across crypto derivatives markets.
Market Sentiment and Macro Influences
Broader financial markets were also under pressure, with risk assets selling off alongside crypto. Uncertainty around U.S. monetary policy — including developments in Federal Reserve leadership — weighed on sentiment and added to cautious positioning among investors.
Stablecoin Market and Rotation Signals
- According to a recent report by crypto analytics platform Santiment, the combined market capitalisation of the top 12 stablecoins fell by approximately USD 2.24 billion over the past 10 days, during which BTC prices declined by around 8%. Santiment noted that some capital may be rotating into traditional safe-haven assets like gold and silver, while other funds appear to be exiting the crypto market entirely rather than remaining on the sidelines in stablecoins.
- The contraction in stablecoin supply also suggests reduced short-term buying liquidity, which may contribute to slower or weaker market rebounds.
Regulatory and Structural Developments
- The U.S. White House hosted discussions with banking and crypto industry leaders focused on market structure and regulatory clarity, particularly around stablecoin interest and digital asset oversight. This reflects the continued intersection between financial regulation and the evolving crypto market.
- Japan is preparing to legalise cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by 2028, marking a significant policy shift by Asia’s second-largest economy toward broader digital asset adoption.
- According to Nikkei, Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) plans to overhaul its investment framework to enable spot crypto ETFs, while also proposing to reduce crypto-related taxes from as high as 55% to a flat 20%. While Japan may be a later entrant compared to other regional markets, the move positions it as a potentially influential participant in an increasingly competitive Asian crypto ETF landscape.
Industry trend: DAT consolidation expected
Industry observers expect digital asset treasury firms to consolidate in 2026, as larger, capital-rich players continue to accumulate Bitcoin and Ethereum, while smaller treasuries may find it harder to keep pace. This reflects an ongoing shift in how digital assets are being positioned by corporate balance sheets.
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