New York, February 3, 2026, 13:42 EST — Regular session
- Bitcoin down 5.8% at $74,060; ether off about 9%.
- CoinGlass shows $2.56 billion in leveraged liquidations after the weekend slide.
- U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs logged about $561.8 million of net inflows on Feb. 2, data show.
Bitcoin (BTC) was down 5.8% at $74,060 on Tuesday, extending a weekend selloff that has pushed traders to cut risk. The largest cryptocurrency ranged between $73,910 and $79,041, while ether fell about 9% to $2,136.
Data provider CoinGlass said bitcoin liquidations — forced closures of leveraged bets when traders cannot meet margin calls — totalled $2.56 billion in recent days, hitting both short and long positions. “People are taking a step back while they have to reassess their risk frameworks and how they operate in this market,” said Adam McCarthy, a senior research analyst at Kaiko. “The biggest risk to prices at these levels have been outside forces,” said Jim Ferraioli, director of crypto research and strategy at Charles Schwab’s Schwab Center for Financial Research. (Reuters)
Rates are back in the frame, and crypto has been trading like a macro sidecar. Stephen Miran told Fox Business he still wanted more than a full percentage point of rate cuts this year. Donald Trump has nominated Kevin Warsh to succeed Jerome Powell at the Federal Reserve when Powell’s term as chair ends in May. (Reuters)
ETF flows offered one counterweight. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs — funds that hold bitcoin directly — pulled in $561.8 million on Monday, according to Farside Investors. Fidelity and BlackRock led the list, with $153.3 million and $142 million of net inflows, respectively, the data showed. (Farside)
Policy risk has not gone away. A closed-door session at the White House aimed at breaking a months-long stalemate between banks and crypto firms over market-structure legislation ended without an agreement. White House spokesman Kush Desai said the administration would keep talking as the two sides fight over whether stablecoins — tokens designed to hold a steady value, usually to the dollar — can pay interest or other rewards. (Reuters)
One fixed point on the calendar: the Fed meets next on March 17-18. Until then, bitcoin traders are likely to keep taking their cues from the dollar and Treasury yields rather than from crypto-specific headlines. (Federal Reserve)
One risk is mechanical. If bitcoin breaks below recent support levels, more liquidations could kick in and deepen the move, especially when liquidity thins. Another is macro: any upside surprise in inflation or yields would tend to squeeze the most volatile corners of markets first.
Investors are watching the U.S. Capitol next. The U.S. House of Representatives was set to vote later Tuesday on final passage of legislation backed by Trump to end the partial government shutdown. The U.S. Department of Labor said the Bureau of Labor Statistics
ency”] will delay the January employment report that was scheduled for Friday, Feb. 6, and will reschedule it once government funding resumes. (Reuters)
