Selloff eases as bitcoin and ether rebound, steadying the crypto market

Freepik Crypto Steadies After Selloff As Bitcoin Ether Reb 44043

Bitcoin and ether are climbing modestly after a sharp market-wide selloff, even as derivatives traders continue to reduce exposure.

Tuesday’s decline pushed bitcoin to $72,870, its lowest since November 2024, and ether to $2,027, a level not seen since May 2025. BTC has rebounded to around $76,100 and ETH to $2,255, with both assets slightly higher since midnight UTC.

Altcoins showed mixed performance. Privacy-focused tokens posted gains, while Solana-based coins such as PUMP and JUP fell 2% and 2.5%, respectively. The broader recovery followed improved market sentiment after the U.S. House of Representatives passed a government funding package to end a partial shutdown, boosting U.S. equity futures and global markets. Precious metals also rose, with gold reclaiming $5,000 and silver climbing nearly 6% to $90.

Derivatives and positioning

Traders continued to de-risk, driving total crypto futures open interest down to $105.9 billion, the lowest since April 2025. Roughly $679 million in positions were liquidated over 24 hours, predominantly from bullish bets. Bitcoin’s 30-day implied volatility surged to 53% annualized, the highest since Dec. 1, signaling heightened market fear.

Open interest in BTC and ETH futures fell 0.7% and 2%, while DOGE and HYPE saw larger outflows. LINK futures rose 2% alongside a positive cumulative volume delta, indicating renewed bullish pressure, mirrored by similar gains in TRX, XLM, and ZEC. Options markets continue to favor downside protection, with short-dated BTC and ETH puts trading at a 10–12 volatility premium to calls. Block trades highlighted demand for put spreads, a traditionally bearish strategy.

Token highlights

Derivatives exchange tokens HYPE, LIT, and ASTER declined as traders rotated into privacy coins. HYPE fell 8.5% but remains up roughly 30% year-to-date. Monero (XMR) rebounded 4% to $324.87 after steep losses since mid-January, while Zcash (ZEC) rose 3.4% to $232.94, recovering from a more than 60% drop since November.

Overall, altcoins underperformed bitcoin during the selloff, pushing BTC dominance above 59%, up from 58.5% at the start of the year. SOL, ADA, and XRP are trading at their lowest levels since 2024, having retraced recent bullish gains—a pattern typical of bear markets, where low liquidity amplifies altcoin volatility.