On January 31, 2026, gold and silver flipped from a powerful advance into a sharp retreat. The decline is framed as a positioning and liquidity event, where crowded trades and margin dynamics outweigh unchanged macro narratives. Without a shift in core fundamentals, the focus turns to whether selling pressure eases, volatility cools, and silver stops leading gold lower.

On January 31, forced liquidations across crypto derivatives exceeded $2 billion within 24 hours, as prices broke below key supports. Bitcoin saw about $700 million in wiped positions, while Ethereum lost roughly $300 million after falling under $2,500 and moving toward $2,400. Market capitalization fell more than 7% intraday before stabilizing.

On January 31, 2026, Bitcoin and Ethereum extended their declines as a sharp wave of derivatives liquidations swept the crypto market, with total liquidations over 24 hours reaching about $1.59 billion and long positions making up the bulk. Bitcoin fell under $80,000 at one stage, briefly dropping below MicroStrategy's reported average cost basis near $76,037 before partially rebounding, while Ethereum slid under $2,500 amid similar leverage-driven pressures. The pullback is being framed as a leverage and market-structure event rather than a shift in underlying fundamentals.

On 31 January 2026 at 21:09, Bitcoin slid to about $77,900, a 7.36% daily decline that coincided with forced unwinds across major tokens. The total crypto market value fell to roughly $2.62 trillion, down 7.48% and erasing over $200 billion, while liquidations topped $2.53 billion, mostly from long positions as Ethereum and Solana underperformed.

From January 31, 2026, the US SEC will operate with a sharply reduced staff as a partial government shutdown triggered by a funding lapse takes effect. Routine work in key divisions is paused, and only emergency matters tied to market integrity and investor protection will be handled. The disruption is expected to delay crypto rulemaking, product approvals and stablecoin-related guidance until full funding is restored.

On January 31, 2026, Hyperliquid's daily revenue rose to $4.3 million, its highest level since November, supported by incentives, liquidity programs, and strong trading activity. The protocol is maintaining about $4.58 billion in TVL, while HIP-3 perpetual futures open interest climbed to a record $793.27 million alongside heavy whale activity in HYPE. One major HYPE holder realized a $4.92 million profit after unstaking and selling, and another whale moved $14.87 million in tokens from Galaxy Digital.

On Saturday, Ethereum, XRP and the wider crypto market saw a sharp pullback, wiping roughly $100 billion from total market value while Bitcoin declined more moderately. The move coincided with reports of Israeli airstrikes in Gaza and unfolded in thin weekend liquidity, with Ethereum leading liquidations and altcoins generally underperforming BTC. By 3:41 pm UTC on Jan. 31, 2026, Ethereum traded at $2,539.70, down 6.22% over 24 hours, as total crypto market capitalization hovered around $2.73 trillion.

On 31 January 2026, a Delaware judge declined to dismiss a shareholder suit against Coinbase, allowing the case to continue for now. Filed in 2023, the suit challenges insider stock sales around the 2021 direct listing, citing more than $2.9 billion sold, including nearly $292 million by Brian Armstrong and roughly $119 million by Marc Andreessen.