Bitcoin Retreats Amid Tech-Led Market Sell-Off

Key Moments

Bitcoin Extends Slide, Breaks Below $71,000

Bitcoin came under heavy pressure on Thursday, dropping nearly 8% and falling to levels close to $70,000, as a combination of waning liquidity and a sharp global sell-off in technology stocks weighed on risk assets.

By 00:28 ET (05:28 GMT), the world’s largest cryptocurrency was last changing hands 7.6% lower at $70,427.1, hovering near its weakest point since early November 2024. Earlier in the session, bitcoin fell to an intraday low of $70,129.6.

The cryptocurrency has now logged declines in seven of the past eight trading sessions and has shed over 40% from its record high near $126,000 reached in October.

BTC just cracked below $71k, Fear & Greed screaming Extreme Fear at 11–12.
Most retail panics here — sells at the bottom. Seems like 2022 all over again… same script.
Reduce leverage if you're overexposed, protect capital, study the chart (BTC testing old supports around $70k) pic.twitter.com/ZvjC7kWikx

— Waris Joyia (@WarisJoyia) February 5, 2026

Liquidity Strain and Tech Rout Drive Forced Selling

Reports indicated liquidity in bitcoin markets was notably thin, magnifying price swings and contributing to a wave of forced liquidations once key technical levels were breached.

The latest downturn followed a pronounced pullback in global technology shares overnight. Concerns about the speed of artificial intelligence adoption and rising capital expenditures at major technology companies pressured sector valuations, feeding into broader risk aversion.

Losses in U.S. technology stocks spilled over into Asian equity markets and then into digital assets, with cryptocurrencies increasingly moving in step with high-growth stocks during periods of market stress.

The decline was accelerated by significant unwinding of leveraged positions, especially in derivatives markets, after bitcoin’s drop below the $75,000 mark set off stop-loss orders. Data from crypto analytics provider CoinGlass showed that nearly $770 million in cryptocurrency positions were liquidated over the previous 24 hours.

Macro Headwinds and Safe-Haven Stress

Broader macroeconomic forces also added to the pressure on digital assets, as a firmer U.S. dollar and a rise in global bond yields reduced investors’ willingness to hold speculative positions.

Traditional safe-haven assets offered little relief. Precious metals, typically viewed as alternative refuges, also saw steep declines, highlighting fragile liquidity across multiple asset classes.

Silver prices dropped nearly 17% in Asian trading, wiping out recent gains and triggering large intraday price swings. Gold also weakened amid the broader market stress.

Overall sentiment toward cryptocurrencies has deteriorated following weeks of volatile, range-bound trading and repeated failures to sustain moves to higher price levels.

Altcoins and Meme Tokens Join the Sell-Off

Selling was not limited to bitcoin. Most major altcoins also moved lower on Thursday in line with the broader risk-off tone.

World no.2 crypto Ethereum fell 7.4% to $2,098.92, while world no. 3 crypto XRP dropped 10% to $1.42. Solana slipped 6%, Cardano declined 5%, and Polygon lost 3.2%.

Among meme tokens, Dogecoin retreated 6%, and $TRUMP was down 3.5%, reflecting broad-based selling across the digital asset complex.