Bitcoin retreated to around $68,000 on Tuesday as a broader risk off move in global markets pressured both technology stocks and precious metals. The decline comes alongside weakness in Nasdaq futures and a continued correction in gold prices, highlighting renewed sensitivity in crypto markets to shifts in traditional financial sentiment.
Bitcoin was down roughly 1.25% on the day, tracking a 0.55% drop in Nasdaq futures. Gold also extended its pullback, falling 2.4% and trading near $4,928 after failing to sustain momentum above the $5,000 level. The metal had previously reached a record high of $5,600 in late January before undergoing a sharp multi day correction. The synchronized retreat in both equities and gold underscores a broader repositioning by investors as uncertainty around artificial intelligence driven valuations and macro conditions weighs on sentiment.
A notable development has been the shift in correlation between bitcoin and US technology stocks. Since early February, the 30 day correlation coefficient between bitcoin and the Nasdaq has moved from negative 0.68 to positive 0.72, signaling that bitcoin is once again trading more closely in line with risk oriented equity assets. This reversal suggests that bitcoin’s recent price action is being influenced more by macro and equity flows than by crypto specific catalysts.
Altcoins have shown relative weakness, with memecoins leading the downside. Tokens such as PEPE, DOGE and TRUMP posted losses between 3.5% and 4.5% during the session. Bitcoin dominance has remained range bound between 57.4% and 60.1% since September, reflecting limited rotation into smaller cap assets during periods of stress.
Derivatives data also points to cautious positioning. Industry wide notional open interest in crypto futures declined 1.5% over 24 hours to approximately $93 billion, marking fresh multi month lows. Exchanges reported significant liquidations, with bullish leveraged positions accounting for the majority of forced closures. Open interest in DOGE futures fell 4%, while contracts tied to PEPE, LINK and AVAX declined between 3% and 5%. Futures exposure in HYPE, a recent outperformer, cooled to levels last seen in early December, suggesting profit taking after its earlier rally.
Implied volatility for bitcoin and ether has eased from recent monthly highs, indicating that the initial panic phase may be stabilizing. However, options markets continue to price puts above calls, signaling lingering downside protection demand among traders.
Despite the broader weakness, some tokens have outperformed on a weekly basis. MORPHO has gained more than 23% over the past seven days, while privacy focused zcash is up around 19% during the same period. Still, lower time frame momentum across several altcoins remains subdued as the market searches for a fresh catalyst.
