Spot cryptocurrency spot trading volume on major exchanges has slid from about $2 trillion in October to roughly $1 trillion by the end of January, reflecting weaker demand and lower investor participation. Analysts link the contraction to a liquidity squeeze, stablecoin outflows and macro uncertainty, while some argue the pullback is a needed reset to reduce leverage and reassess Bitcoin valuations. Market cycle metrics based on short- and long-term holder realized prices suggest Bitcoin may not yet have reached a definitive price bottom.

On Monday, Tether said it will expand support for USDt (USDT) and Tether Gold XAUT in Opera's MiniPay wallet, which runs on the Celo blockchain. The move targets users in regions such as Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia, where MiniPay reports 12.6 million activated wallets and more than 350 million processed transactions.

In Q1 2026, Ether (ETH) is down 21% — its third-weakest first quarter — according to CoinGlass, but Fundstrat’s Tom Lee argues the pullback looks attractive amid strengthening fundamentals. He points to record network activity and says weakness stems from leverage not returning since the Oct. 10 crash and capital rotating to precious metals; Lee also noted BitMine bought 41,788 ETH last week.

Bitcoin slid from $84,000 on Saturday to about $74,600 on Monday, the lowest level in nine months, and now trades below the average cost basis for US spot Bitcoin ETFs. The 11 funds recorded $2.8 billion in outflows over the past two weeks as AUM hovers near $113 billion with roughly 1.28 million BTC.

Bitcoin dropped to $81,058 on Coinbase in early Friday trading, marking a nine‑month low. CoinGlass reported $1.68 billion in liquidations over 24 hours, with 93% affecting levered longs in BTC and ETH. The selloff aligned with Middle East tensions, Trump’s tariff order, and weak tech earnings.

Tokenization platform Securitize reported that its revenue for the nine months ended September 2025 climbed to $55.6 million, marking an 841% year-over-year increase as it proceeds with a SPAC merger backed by Cantor Fitzgerald. The firm, valued at $1.24 billion under the proposed deal, also projects 2026 revenue of $110 million amid a broader surge in on-chain tokenized real-world assets.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued guidance on Wednesday classifying tokenized securities into issuer-supported and third-party models. It clarified that federal securities laws apply regardless of onchain or offchain recordkeeping and noted that third-party structures can take custodial entitlement or synthetic exposure forms.

Deribit reports that heavy Bitcoin options activity and concentrated open interest around key strikes are helping to confine BTC's price near $90,000. The exchange notes that traders are favoring hedged and structured positions over outright leveraged futures as a major Jan. 30 options expiry approaches.

BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes argues that simultaneous yen weakness and rising Japanese government bond yields could push Japanese investors to offload US Treasuries. He suggests the Federal Reserve may eventually create dollar reserves to support the yen and JGB market, which would expand its balance sheet and, in his view, supply the liquidity needed for Bitcoin to break out of its current range.