Overview
Bitcoin climbed back above $62,000 on Sunday, recouping ground after a steep selloff earlier in the week that drove the asset to its weakest levels of 2026. At 05:04 ET (09:04 GMT) the world's largest cryptocurrency was trading at $62,843.5, up 3.08% for the session, after briefly slipping below the psychologically important $60,000 level on Friday.
Market losses and liquidations
The market endured one of its toughest weeks since the fallout from FTX in late 2022. Over the span of the week, Bitcoin declined by more than 17% while Ether dropped roughly 20%. Broadly, the cryptocurrency market lost about $390 billion in value, putting total market capitalization just above $2 trillion.
Liquidations played a substantial role in amplifying the downturn. Data cited by CoinDesk from CoinGlass indicated that nearly $7 billion of leveraged positions were liquidated during the week, with long positions responsible for about $5.7 billion of those losses.
Specific catalysts cited by market participants
One factor drawing investor attention was Strategy's disclosure that it sold Bitcoin for the first time since 2022. The sale involved 32 BTC, worth roughly $2.5 million, and prompted concern among some investors who had regarded the company as a steady buyer of the asset.
Spot Bitcoin ETF outflows also persisted as a headwind. At the same time, market commentators pointed to a rotation of capital toward investments tied to artificial intelligence - including AI infrastructure, semiconductor companies, and anticipated technology IPOs - as funds sought other opportunities.
Macro backdrop
The selloff accelerated after a stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report on Friday. The report pushed Treasury yields higher and reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve could keep interest rates elevated for longer, a dynamic that weighed on risk assets including cryptocurrencies.
Institutional and on-chain developments
Despite the price volatility, several developments underscored continued institutional and on-chain activity. Major banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup, along with other lenders, announced plans to launch a shared tokenized deposit network by 2027. The network is intended to allow deposits to move across blockchain infrastructure with around-the-clock settlement.
On-chain activity also attracted attention: several Bitcoin wallets that originated in 2011 became active after more than a decade of dormancy, drawing notice within the crypto community and highlighting the value still held by some of Bitcoin's earliest investors.
Altcoins and weekend price moves
Broader crypto prices mirrored Bitcoin's moves, with varied results across tokens on Saturday. Ether rose 4.45% to $1,640.23 but remained down 17.58% for the week. XRP gained 6.58% to $1.1631, despite a weekly decline of more than 13.18%.
Solana and Cardano reversed recent losses and were up 5.24% and 6.25%, respectively, while BNB increased 3.45%. Among memecoins, Dogecoin edged higher by 5.28% and the token labeled $TRUMP was flat at 0.00% for the session.
Market outlook
Investors are now watching whether Bitcoin can keep support above $60,000 and extend its short-term recovery following a week dominated by liquidations, ETF outflows, and wider macroeconomic uncertainty. The interaction between persistent macro forces, flows into and out of crypto products, and ongoing on-chain developments will likely shape near-term price action.
Reporter: Maya Rios