After crashing all week, bitcoin It bottomed late last Thursday at $60,000 before a gigantic Friday rally saw the price rise nearly 20% to just under $72,000. That rebound, however, is increasingly looking like a “dead cat” type.
By mid-morning in US trading, bitcoin fell sharply again, trading just below $66,000 and down more than 4% in the last 24 hours. Ether and sunny are lower about 5.5% and XRP has dropped 3.5%.
Earlier in the session, US stocks have returned to a more or less stable level during the day. Gold and silver rose 0.8% and 3.2%, respectively.
Earlier Wednesday, the U.S. government reported January job growth of 130,000, nearly doubling economists’ forecasts. The unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to 4.3%.
This has interest rate traders quickly backing away from any expectations of imminent Federal Reserve rate cuts. They are now pricing in just a 6% chance of an easing in March and a 23% chance of a rate cut in April, according to CME FedWatch. Before the report, the chances of a move in March were 21% and those of a move in April were 52%.
It is debatable whether rate cuts would have brought cryptocurrencies out of their bear market. After all, this strong bearish action began in 2025, when the Federal Reserve eased monetary policy in three consecutive meetings.
Interest decreases
With so many other assets around the world in bull markets while cryptocurrencies continue to falter, it appears that investor interest in cryptocurrencies is waning.
Coinglass reported Wednesday that bitcoin perpetual futures open interest has fallen again and now sits 51% below its October 2025 peak, “indicating a significant pullback in trader conviction and leverage.”
“We’re seeing an ‘exit out of crypto’ movement as investors tire,” one analyst told Bloomberg in an article about South Korean investors exiting cryptocurrencies as that country’s Kospi stock index hits record highs.
Monthly trading volume on the Kospi increased by 221% year-over-year last month, the story continued, while trading on crypto exchanges decreased by approximately 65%.
“This is a failure,” the analyst said. “Retail is exhausted and fleeing towards the Kospi.”
Crypto Stocks Fall Sharply Across the Board
Nothing green can be found in the entire stock market sector related to cryptocurrencies. Robinhood (HOOD) is down 12.5% after reporting a sharp drop in cryptocurrency trading revenue in the fourth quarter. This is weighing down its peer Coinbase (COIN), which is down 7% ahead of its earnings report scheduled for Thursday evening.
Leading bitcoin treasury firm Strategy (MSTR) is down 4.5% and ether treasury giant Bitmine Immersion (BMNR) is down 3.8%.
Circle Financial (CRCL) was down 4.7%, Galaxy Digital (GLXY) was down 3.2% and Bullish (BLSH) was down 5.3%.
