Odaily News Kaiko, an encryption research company, pointed out in its latest report that cryptocurrencies are in a tricky situation. The short-term funding rates of Bitcoin and Ethereum (usually used as an indicator of market sentiment) are low, indicating that investors are struggling to find a clear direction. At the same time, the end-of-month option expiration situation shows a balance, which means that traders are betting that the volatility will be short-lived, and the wave of liquidation in the derivatives market has also exacerbated the volatility. The open interest of Bitcoin and Ethereum on mainstream CEX fell by 4% and 12% respectively last weekend.
South Korean cryptocurrency trading volumes have dropped significantly since December, and altcoins, led by XRP and DOGE, continued to face strong selling pressure throughout January. Taking Upbit as an example, large DOGE orders dominated the high price range, which may indicate that large traders or whales are leading the sell-off and may be taking profits. XRP is the most actively traded asset on Upbit in January, with a cumulative trading volume of approximately $790 million, more than twice that of DOGE.
In addition, most meme tokens have lagged behind the market, but the craze is far from over, and major US exchanges such as Coinbase are currently considering switching from an "allow list" to a "block list" strategy to more effectively manage the influx of meme coins. But for Trump, investors never know what will happen. Kaiko analyst Adam McCarthy said: "He (Trump) is like a toddler who is testing his limits."