Why Is Crypto Down Today? – February 2, 2026 | Unpacking the Market Tremors

Crypto markets tumble—again. What's rattling the digital cages this time?

The Macro Squeeze

Forget 'digital gold' narratives when traditional finance sneezes. Global rate whispers from central banks are hitting risk assets across the board. Crypto isn't an island; it's the most volatile peninsula attached to the mainland.

Regulatory Headwinds Intensify

New draft rules from multiple jurisdictions landed overnight. The usual dance: promises of 'clarity' met with immediate sell-offs from institutions allergic to paperwork. One regulator's 'consumer protection' is a trader's liquidation trigger.

Liquidity Ghost Town

Volume's drying up in major altcoin pairs. It doesn't take a tsunami to rock a shallow pool—a few large sell orders in thin markets create exaggerated price moves. The 'efficient market' looks a lot like panic in a phone booth.

Derivatives Domino Effect

Leverage is a double-edged sword, and today it's swinging wildly. Cascading liquidations in the perpetual swaps market are adding fuel to the downturn. A cynical jab? It's the same old story: borrowed money magnifying gains until it inevitably magnifies losses.

So, is this a buying opportunity or the start of a deeper correction? The charts are shouting fear, but the blockchain keeps ticking—transparent, immutable, and utterly indifferent to your portfolio's plight. Sometimes the market needs to exhale before it can find its next breath.

Crypto Winners & Losers

The week, and the month for that matter, began in the red. On Monday morning (UTC), all top 10 coins per market capitalisation have seen their prices drop.

fell by 2.1%, currently trading at $76,472.

is down 7.2%, changing hands at $2,225. This is the second-highest drop in the category.

The fall is 7.7% by, currently standing at $2,224.

is next, with a 4.3% drop, now trading at $1.58.

On the other hand, the smallest decrease among the top 10 is 1.3% by, changing hands at $0.2829

1.5% to $0.1032 is next, followed by BTC.

Furthermore, of the top 100 coins per market cap, 91 have posted price decreases today.

Of these, one saw a double increase.is up 12.8% to the price of $5.7.

appreciated 7%, trading at $1.33, while the rest of the green list is up 4% and less.

As for the red list,fell 8.7% to the price of $396, followed by8.1% drop to $2,376

‘The Market is Playing Out as Expected’

John Glover, Chief Investment Officer of, argued that a sense of panic had entered the BTC market last week as the coin fell below $84,000. The market hadn’t closed below this price since April 2025, Glover noted.

And yet, from an Elliott Wave perspective, the market is playing out as expected.

“We remain in Wave IV and look for this to complete somewhere between $71,000 and $84,000.” He adds: “Looking to accumulate BTC between these prices after having closed long positions at $117,000 once the Wave III top formed at $124,000.”

Moreover, Glover doesn’t see Wave V beginning until the second quarter of this year. Once it does start, his target will be $140,000 to $165,000, he said.

“I’ll be better able to reduce this range once we know where Wave IV completes. This count will be proven wrong if we close below $67,000 this year,” the CIO concluded.

Closing the week,analysts noted that the latest news from the US (which had come out by Friday) pulled crypto down.

More specifically, the nomination of Kevin Warsh as the new Federal Reserve Chair and “a hotter-than-expected PPI triggered a hawkish shock,” the analysts said.

The nomination of Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair and a hotter-than-expected PPI triggered a hawkish shock, pushing commodities and crypto lower.

Here’s what BTC options data says about positioning, volatility, and sentiment beneath the move. pic.twitter.com/Mn2YKRGoTf

Levels & Events to Watch Next

At the time of writing on Monday morning, BTC was changing hands at $76,472. It has been a relatively calm day for the coin by the time of writing. It slowly decreased from the intraday high of $79,049 to the day’s low of $74,591.

Over the past week, ETH dropped 13%, trading within the $75,442–$90,117 range. It also fell 15% in the past 30 days and just below 40% from its all-time high of $126,080, recorded in October 2025.

Further decreases could see BTC’s price pull to $72,400, followed by the $70,100 and $68,000 zones.

At the same time, ethereum was trading at $2,225. Its highest point was $2,432, seen at the beginning of this day. It gradually fell to the intraday low of $2,166, recovering somewhat since then.

Moreover, ETH decreased by 28.2% over the past month. It is also down 55% from the ATH of $4,946, posted five months ago.

Should ETH drop further, it will find itself below the $2,000 level, which WOULD mark a significant shift. It may pull back to the $1,900 and $1,850 levels.

Meanwhile, over the weekend, the crypto market sentiment posted a major decrease, exiting the fear zone and plunging lower.

The crypto fear and greed index today stands at 18, compared to 28 on Friday and 26 on Saturday. With this move, it has entered the extreme fear zone.

This MOVE showcases the significant worry permeating through the markets. It also highlights heightened risk avoidance among market participants. It’s currently unclear if the index will be able to pull upwards this week to any notable level.

ETFs Continue the Red Streak

The US BTC spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) closed last week and month with another high outflow level. They recorded $509.7 million in negative flows on Friday, 30 January. With that, the total net inflow dropped to $55.01 billion.

Of the twelve ETFs, one is red, while three are green. Yet the three’s collective inflow wasn’t enough to turn the category green for the day.

took in $8.34 million, followed by$7.3 million and$2.96 million in inflows. However,posted $528.3 million in outflows.

Moreover, the US ETH ETFs also posted inflows during the Friday session, higher than those recorded on Thursday, letting go of $252.87 million. The total net inflow fell below $12 billion and now stands at $11.97 billion.

Of the nine ETH ETFs, two saw outflows, and none recorded inflows.is at the top of this short, red list with outflows of $157.16 million.follows with $95.71 million in negative flows.

Meanwhile, Michael Saylor’shas seen its bitcoin stack turn unprofitable after BTC fell below the $76,000 level. This means that the price dropped below Strategy’s average holding cost of $76,037 per coin.

Therefore, given that it holds 712,647 BTC, the company faces an unrealised loss of over $900 million. Nonetheless, it seems it will not be slowing down with its accumulation plan.

As #Bitcoin fell below $75,000, Michael Saylor(@saylor)'s @Strategy's 712,647 $BTC is now facing an unrealized loss of over $900M.https://t.co/iFtYbgyI3Q pic.twitter.com/p3gQpkzDuU

Moreover, Bitcoin falling below the average cost basis of US spot Bitcoin ETFs left the typical ETF buyer underwater.

Quick FAQ

The crypto market saw a notable decrease over the past 24 hours. Meanwhile, the US stock market closed the Friday session lower. By the end of trading on 30 January, thewas down 0.43%, thedecreased by 1.28%, and thefell by 0.36%. Nonetheless, the S&P 500 and the Dow ended January in the green. Market participants were digesting the December Producer Price Index report, as well as the US President’s Federal Reserve chair announcement.

The decreases are likely to continue in the short term. Market participants are searching for signals that would indicate how long the decline will last and what awaits in the mid to longer term. Moreover, they’re waiting to see if we’ll be entering the bear market soon.