Bitcoin's network hashrate has dropped about 12% since November, representing the steepest extended decline since 2021. A major U.S. winter storm strained power grids and led many large mining firms in affected regions to switch off equipment, temporarily reducing network security but setting up a lower difficulty adjustment that can improve margins for miners who remain online or restart later.

Binance has begun converting its $1 billion SAFU fund into Bitcoin, completing an initial $100,000,000 purchase of BTC from stablecoins. The exchange shared the SAFU Bitcoin address and confirmed the first batch of the conversion, signaling a public reserve-boosting move after Bitcoin fell more than 38% from its October 2025 all-time high of $126,198. The full conversion is expected to continue over the coming weeks as the platform seeks to reinforce user confidence.

On February 2 2026, newly released Department of Justice files on Jeffrey Epstein reignited online claims that he secretly steered Bitcoin's development and enabled code backdoors. Commentators focused on Epstein's indirect donations to MIT's Digital Currency Initiative, which briefly funded several Bitcoin Core developers, and tried to link this to the FBI's 2021 Colonial Pipeline ransom recovery. However, the reports emphasize that Bitcoin's open-source, decentralized governance and public code reviews undermine assertions of centralized control or hidden vulnerabilities attributed to Epstein.

On Monday, Strategy said in a US SEC filing that it bought 855 BTC for $75.3 million last week at an average $87,974 per coin. Bitcoin opened the week above $87,700, touched $90,000, then briefly slipped under $75,000 on Sunday, per CoinGecko, moving below the company's $76,052 average cost for the first time since late 2023.

On 2 February 2026, Michael Saylor stated that Strategy acquired 855 additional Bitcoin for about $75.3 million at an average price near $87,974 per BTC. Following the purchase, the company holds 713,502 BTC, accumulated at an average cost of roughly $76,052 per coin, reinforcing its long-term Bitcoin treasury approach despite ongoing market volatility.

On January 31, the U.S. Department of Justice released a new batch of Jeffrey Epstein documents that referenced Blockstream co-founders Adam Back and Austin Hill in 2014 email exchanges about an $18 million seed round. The emails described an oversubscribed allocation and travel plans involving Epstein, while Adam Back has stated on X that Blockstream has no direct or indirect financial relationship with Epstein or his estate and that a fund linked to Joi Ito later divested its minority stake.

On 2 February 2026, Bitcoin traded near $78,000 after losing the $80,000 level, as risk assets broadly weakened. Farside Investors reported roughly $1.5 billion in net outflows from US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs last week, adding pressure. Raoul Pal attributed the drawdown to a short-lived US liquidity crunch and projected a stronger backdrop into 2026.

On January 27, the Sverdlovsk Regional Arbitration Court opened observation for Fox Group, which owns 98% of BitRiver's management unit, following a $9.2 million claim by En+'s Infrastructure of Siberia. The action puts Russia's largest Bitcoin miner at risk of insolvency amid an equipment-delivery dispute, regional mining bans, energy payment conflicts, and CEO Igor Runets's recent detention on tax-evasion charges.