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Crypto market sentiment fell to its lowest level since mid-2022 on Friday as Bitcoin slid to around $60,000 during early trading. The drop followed weeks of worsening risk appetite and a sharp pullback from Bitcoin’s 2026 high near $97,000.
The Crypto Fear & Greed Index sank to 9 out of 100, a level linked with ‘extreme fear.’ The reading marked the weakest sentiment since June 2022, after the Terra-related market shock. The index stayed depressed for roughly two weeks as the sell-off intensified.
Bitcoin briefly traded a little above $60,000 on Coinbase and then rebounded toward the mid-$64,000 area. The 24-hour move included a drop of about 13% and a loss of more than $10,000, according to crypto market data.
The slide also pushed Bitcoin below the 200-week exponential moving average, a long-term trend indicator. Market analysts often monitor that level because prior breaks have appeared during deep bear-market phases. The price also sat about 50% below its October peak near $126,000.
Forced selling accelerated as traders closed or lost leveraged positions. Liquidation data showed more than 588,000 traders wiped out over 24 hours, with total liquidations around $2.59 billion. About 85% of liquidations came from long positions, concentrated in Bitcoin-linked products.
Analysts tied the downturn to a wider shift away from risk. Jeff Ko, Chief Analyst at CoinEx Research, linked Bitcoin’s weekly drawdown of more than 20% to a selloff in US tech stocks. He said investors had already flagged stretched valuations and concerns around an AI-driven bubble.
Ko also pointed to large declines in major technology names after earnings updates. He said the moves pushed investors to reassess Bitcoin’s role during stress, compared with traditional safe-haven assets such as gold. The correlation between crypto and high-beta equities remained a key theme.
Nick Ruck, director at LVRG Research, described the mood as “heightened risk aversion.” He linked the shift to softer US job market signals, including higher unemployment claims. He also cited doubts about economic strength and expectations for a cautious stance on rate cuts.
The sell-off also affected public companies that hold large Bitcoin reserves. Strategy reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $12.4 billion, driven mainly by fair-value changes in its Bitcoin holdings. The company’s report drew attention because Bitcoin traded below its average acquisition cost.
Strategy said it held 713,502 BTC as of February 1, 2026. The company reported a total acquisition cost of about $54.26 billion, and the average cost basis sits at $76,052 per BTC. Those figures imply that a sustained price below that level reduces the unrealized position.
Strategy also highlighted liquidity buffers. It reported a $2.25 billion US dollar reserve designed to support dividend and interest coverage for about 2.5 years, with ongoing return-of-capital distributions tied to preferred instruments. The disclosures offered investors more detail on near-term funding capacity.
Also Read: Bitcoin News Today: Corporate BTC Stash Hit 1.13M Coins While ETF Flows Drive Price Volatility
