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Bitcoin slid during Asian trading hours after failing to break above $94,500, weighing on the broader crypto market.
BTC $90,338.24 dropped to roughly $91,530 by 10:00 a.m. UTC, down from a local high near $93,750 at midnight. This marked Bitcoin’s third unsuccessful attempt in five weeks to surpass $94,500.
Altcoins fell harder, with PENGU and XRP declining 6.5% and 3.5% respectively since midnight. Bitcoin is now trading within December’s $85,000–$94,500 range, continuing the downtrend that began in October.
The sell-off reflects rising risk-off sentiment. U.S. equities also softened, with Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.32% in pre-market trading. Crypto futures saw $465 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, with longs making up more than half — a reversal from the previous two days when shorts dominated.
Global crypto futures open interest (OI) remains above $143 billion, the highest in nearly two months, with moderately positive funding rates suggesting sustained bullish positioning. XRP, DOGE, SUI, and ZEC OI fell 5%-6%, likely due to profit-taking. CME Bitcoin futures OI rose from 100K BTC to 111K BTC since Dec. 30, still below last year’s 191K BTC.
Memecoins and privacy coins led losses, with ZEC ($423.54) down 4.5%, while the CoinDesk Memecoin Index fell 1.5%, twice the decline of the CoinDesk 5 index.
DeFi showed resilience, with total value locked rising 0.17% despite price weakness. TRX ($0.2950) bucked the trend, gaining 1.2% over 24 hours. CoinMarketCap’s “altcoin season” indicator sits at 25/100, suggesting cautious optimism for altcoins.
