Digital asset funds saw $288 million exit in the latest week, extending a five-week streak of outflows that has now reached $4 billion. Bitcoin products led with $215 million in redemptions, while XRP, Solana, and Chainlink posted modest inflows that failed to counter broad altcoin weakness. Concurrently, Bitcoin's drop below $65,000 triggered about $230 million in long liquidations amid rising geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty.

Vitalik Buterin sold 1,869 ETH valued at about $3.67 million over the past two days while ether fell from roughly $1,980 to $1,850. He previously moved 3,500 ETH from Aave and earlier disposals totaled 6,958 ETH. Despite recent sales, his holdings remain above 224,000 ETH.

Bitcoin briefly traded under $65,000 on Monday after a proposal by US President Donald Trump to lift global tariffs to 15%, while an analyst now places the market in a late-cycle stress phase. Based on this six-stage roadmap, the current sideways period could eventually give way to a capitulation leg, with revised potential downside targets between $35,000 and $45,000 amid deteriorating liquidity conditions.

Satoshi Nakamoto is estimated to control about 1.1 million BTC, a stake that outweighs the holdings of major exchanges, corporations and governments. Coinbase, Binance, BlackRock, Strategy, Tether, and several public firms collectively manage large on-chain balances, while the United States, China, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and Germany have accumulated or seized substantial amounts of Bitcoin in recent years.

According to Chainalysis, cryptocurrency payments to suppliers of fentanyl precursor chemicals started to decline in mid-2023, several months before official data showed a fall in overdose deaths. The report argues that on-chain flows can signal disruptions in illicit synthetic opioid supply three to six months ahead of public health statistics. It also notes an 85% year-over-year surge in 2025 crypto transactions tied to suspected human trafficking services, reaching hundreds of millions of dollars, with much of the activity centered in Southeast Asia.

Bitcoin has fallen nearly half since its October record and remains below $70,000. Brian Armstrong said Coinbase data shows retail users continued buying dips, with February balances equal to or above December, while market commentator Mippo warned of a potential "full-on crypto winter" comparable to 2022 or 2019.

Santiment's data indicates that Bitcoin's aggregated funding rates across major exchanges have fallen to their most negative levels since August 2024, reflecting a heavy build-up of short positions. Following long liquidations on Binance on October 10, 2025, traders increasingly moved into leveraged shorts, creating one-sided bearish positioning that could set the stage for a potential short squeeze.

Bitcoin traded above $66,000 on Friday after falling about 30% over the past month. Alphractal said the network's long-term Realized Cap Impulse moved below zero for the first time in three years, a shift historically followed by extended drawdowns. A global uncertainty gauge is at a record high, reinforcing a cautious backdrop for risk assets.

Crypto lender BlockFills temporarily paused client deposits and withdrawals last week amid market volatility and liquidity pressures. Trading on spot and derivatives markets remains available, while the freeze may affect around 2,000 institutional clients with at least $10 million in crypto assets. Management is working with investors and clients to restore platform liquidity.