Friday saw cryptocurrency markets experience a significant downturn, wiping out approximately $115 billion in total market value. Bitcoin, which had been hovering near $88,000 just a day earlier, tumbled to $83,800, representing a 3.8% decline over 24 hours. The broader crypto market felt even greater pain, with the CoinDesk 20 Index falling 5.7% as altcoins like Avalanche, Polygon, Near, and Uniswap suffered losses approaching 10%.
Ethereum’s struggles were particularly notable, with ETH declining over 6% and reaching its weakest price relative to Bitcoin since May 2020. This downtrend has been emphasized by the lack of inflows into spot ETH exchange-traded funds since early March, contrasting sharply with Bitcoin ETFs which attracted over $1 billion in the past two weeks alone.
The crypto sell-off coincided with broader market weakness as U.S. stocks declined following disappointing economic data. The February PCE inflation report showed higher-than-expected core inflation at 2.8%, while consumer spending indicated minimal real growth. Adding to investor concerns are the Federal Reserve of Atlanta’s projected Q1 economic contraction and upcoming U.S. tariff implementations. Despite the current downturn, some analysts remain cautiously optimistic, noting that Bitcoin’s drop may represent a technical filling of the CME futures gap and suggesting strong support exists in the $70,000-$75,000 range.
