In the cryptocurrency market, altcoins, especially those with small market capitalizations, have failed to recover. Why is this?
The cryptocurrency market is still showing no signs of recovery after the October 10 crash, which saw the largest single-day liquidation in the sector’s history.
The “post-liquidation stagnation” process that occurred in the market due to the effect of the approximately $20 billion selling wave became especially evident in altcoins.
In this segment, where speculative investment is concentrated, the market-cap-weighted index tracking 50 small-cap altcoins is currently below even the level seen during the FTX crash of 2022. This group, which also includes memecoins like “PumpFun,” is typically held by individual investors and is seen as an early indicator of market risk appetite. The sharp decline suggests a renewed pullback in speculative capital.
Bitcoin remains above the $100,000 level, but hasn’t recovered from a few weeks ago. The largest cryptoasset has been experiencing volatility, fueled by forced liquidations triggered by exchanges like Binance following a sharp drop in collateral values.
Markets are generally considered to be entering a difficult period for both hedges and momentum assets. The sharp decline in gold and silver after breaking records reflects a general fatigue in the most heavily traded positions of 2025.
Brett Munster, portfolio manager at Blockforce Capital, described the sell-off as reflecting “not the crypto’s fundamental value, but rather a shift by short-term investors in their positions against macroeconomic volatility.” However, according to Munster, the process also exposed the platforms’ structural vulnerabilities based on opaque risk engines.
A similar cooling-off trend is also evident in the ETF market. BlackRock’s $88 billion iShares Bitcoin Trust fund experienced a total outflow of $400 million in five trading days. Meanwhile, the Ethereum-based ETHA fund withdrew $260 million in two days. While these figures are modest compared to its asset size under management, they are a sign of declining interest from individual investors.
Futures markets also remain weak. According to K33 Research data, funding rates for Bitcoin futures have been negative for the past week, suggesting investors are paying to maintain their short positions. While open interest remains low, volatility selling in options markets has increased, suggesting investors are anticipating sideways price action.
Demand for $100,000 Bitcoin put options remains high, according to Coinbase’s Deribit platform. This defensive positioning contrasts with the risk appetite in equities.
Markets are now focused on Friday’s US CPI data. A higher-than-expected inflation reading could put pressure on both digital and traditional hedge assets. According to Vetle Lunde, Research Director at K33 Research, “risk appetite has completely reversed since October 10th,” and this situation resembles “typical post-mass liquidation processes”: low volume, weak interest, and increased short positions.
