Bitcoin Hits 9-Month Low in Cross-Asset Liquidation Crisis

The sell-off was both severe and widespread, creating a rare moment of correlation between typically disparate asset classes. According to data highlighted by The Kobeissi Letter, the most dramatic collapse occurred in natural gas, with prices plummeting 15.5% in a single day. Precious metals, long considered defensive holdings, offered no shelter: silver fell 8% and gold dropped 5.5%, collectively wiping more than $10 trillion from their market capitalizations over three days. This parallel decline in commodities and crypto placed the digital asset class firmly inside a wider ‘risk-off’ trade, where investors exit positions across the board.

The pressure extended to global equity markets. U.S. stock futures continued to slide, with Nasdaq 100 futures down 1.8%. The rout was even more pronounced in Asia, where South Korea’s KOSPI index dropped over 5%, a move severe enough to trigger a halt on all sell orders. This cross-market nature of the sell-off suggests a powerful, unified shift in capital allocation. Market watchers interpret the simultaneous retreat from both risky tech stocks and traditional safe havens like gold as a move toward cash, likely driven by mounting concerns over stretched valuations and looming economic headwinds.

Analysts pointed to market structure, not a specific news event, as the immediate catalyst for the crash. The Kobeissi Letter described the situation as “entirely a liquidity situation,” where excessive leverage in choppy markets created dangerous “air pockets” in prices. When prices began to fall, these over-leveraged positions were forcibly closed, or liquidated, triggering a cascading effect that accelerated losses. This mechanism was starkly visible in the crypto market, where more than $2.5 billion in leveraged positions was liquidated on January 31 alone, as noted by analyst Ash Crypto on X.

Warning signs of the impending turmoil were present in corporate America. The Kobeissi Letter also reported that the ratio of insider stock sellers to buyers at U.S.-listed companies reached 4.8 in January, marking the highest level since early 2021. This surge in insider selling indicates that corporate executives were actively securing gains and reducing exposure ahead of the market downturn, a classic signal of eroding confidence at the highest levels of the business world.

At the epicenter of the crypto sell-off, Bitcoin broke below the $75,000 support level to touch its lowest point since April 2025. Based on CoinGecko data, Bitcoin was trading around $76,400 at the time of writing, down nearly 13% over the past week and roughly 17% over two weeks. More concerning for long-term holders is its position nearly 40% below its all-time high of over $126,000, set in October 2025. On a yearly view, BTC is down close to 24%.

The asset’s decline has now persisted for four consecutive months, with January closing with a loss of over 10%. This marks the first time Bitcoin has seen four or more red monthly closes since the 2018 bear market, a historical parallel that weighs heavily on sentiment. Trading over a 24-hour period ranged from around $74,500 to just over $79,000, illustrating the sharp intraday swings and heightened volatility that now characterize the market. While Bitcoin’s weekly drop was less severe than Ethereum’s 23% plunge, its role as the market benchmark means its performance continues to dictate overall crypto sentiment.

The event underscores a critical evolution in cryptocurrency market dynamics: its increasing, albeit painful, integration with traditional finance. The synchronized sell-off across assets demonstrates that crypto is no longer an isolated silo but is vulnerable to the same liquidity shocks and risk-aversion that rock conventional markets. As investors pull capital from both speculative tech assets and defensive commodities, the move toward cash highlights a period of significant reassessment and caution for the global financial system.