Why crypto is selling off – and what it means for risk assets

In a matter of weeks, crypto has swung from new highs and headlines about institutional adoption to renewed talk of a “crypto winter”. Bitcoin has given back a meaningful part of its recent rally, with ethereum falling even further in percentage terms. The entire crypto market has dropped sharply, and many listed crypto-related equities have followed.

For investors, the key question is no longer just why crypto is down, but what this move reveals about risk appetite. Crypto is increasingly behaving less like a niche asset and more like a high-beta gauge of global liquidity and market mood.

From crypto story to risk signal

A useful way to view today’s market is to treat crypto as a liquidity canary.

Crypto trades around the clock, reacts faster than most asset classes, and attracts both retail and institutional capital. That makes it highly sensitive to shifts in financial conditions. When liquidity is plentiful, capital flows in quickly. When it tightens, crypto is often the first place where it shows.

Over recent years, bitcoin’s correlation with high-growth tech stocks has strengthened. At the same time, crypto typically struggles when the US dollar strengthens or when real yields rise – two classic risk-off signals in global markets. In practice, moves in bitcoin now say as much about macro conditions as they do about crypto itself.

For multi-asset investors, watching crypto levels has therefore become a way to gauge broader risk appetite in real time, rather than treating it as an isolated market.

A look at the relationship: bitcoin vs tech

Macro, liquidity and positioning

The current sell-off is closely tied to a shift in the macro backdrop.

Markets have dialled back expectations for rapid interest-rate cuts, and real yields – nominal yields adjusted for inflation – have moved higher. For assets with no cash flows, such as bitcoin and ethereum, a higher real cost of capital is a clear headwind.

At the same time, high-growth technology and AI-linked stocks have also pulled back, and overall positioning in risk assets has become more cautious. Crypto, sitting at the high-beta end of that spectrum, naturally reacts more sharply.

Market structure amplifies the move. Crypto markets remain heavily influenced by leverage. When widely watched price levels break, forced liquidations can accelerate selling, especially when liquidity is thin. Earlier inflows into crypto vehicles have also softened, removing one of the tailwinds that supported prices earlier in the year.

Volatility: what derivatives markets are telling us

Price is only part of the story. Volatility is offering its own signal.

Implied volatility on bitcoin and ethereum has risen meaningfully as the sell-off unfolded. Typically, this comes with two features:

• higher overall implied volatility, reflecting greater uncertainty
• more expensive downside protection, as demand for put options increases

Even for investors who never trade derivatives, these shifts are informative. Rising crypto volatility alongside rising equity or credit volatility often points to a broader risk-off environment. When volatility rises sharply in crypto but remains contained elsewhere, stress may be more localised.

The message is simple: volatility has become an asset class of its own, and it can reveal changes in sentiment earlier than price alone.

How this fits into previous crypto cycles

Viewed over a longer horizon, the current pullback fits a familiar pattern.

Previous crypto cycles have tended to feature strong rallies followed by sharp interim corrections – sometimes 20–40% – before either resuming the uptrend or shifting into a deeper downturn once liquidity fades. Large swings are a structural feature of the asset class.

The current cycle has new characteristics: regulated investment products, greater institutional participation and a more developed derivatives market. The macro backdrop is also different, with higher inflation and higher real yields than in earlier cycles.

Yet two themes remain constant:

• large moves in crypto are normal
• turning points are only obvious in hindsight

Ethereum often experiences larger percentage swings than bitcoin, highlighting the higher risk profile of non-bitcoin exposures.

What this means for investors

This article does not attempt to forecast where bitcoin or ethereum will trade next. The more helpful question is simpler: Is this a moment for panic or euphoria? And the honest answer: neither.

Instead, the latest move offers a clearer framework for thinking:

• Don’t overreact to big moves. Crypto’s swings are dramatic by nature. A sharp drop does not automatically signal crisis, just as a fast rally does not guarantee a new cycle.
• Let indicators steer your thinking, not emotions. Rising real yields, a stronger dollar and higher volatility explain why crypto behaves this way. Understanding the backdrop helps avoid emotional decisions.
• Use crypto as a signal, not a trigger. Because crypto reacts fast, it can move before equities or credit. That makes it useful to watch – but not a reason to panic or celebrate.
• Check your true exposure to risk. Investors holding both high-growth tech and crypto may have more concentrated risk than they realise, even if the allocation to crypto is small.
• Stay rational, not reactive. Market swings create noise, but long-term drivers rarely change overnight. Decisions should reflect the environment, not the emotion of the moment.

In short: this is not a moment to panic or to celebrate. It’s a moment to think, stay aware of the backdrop, and keep crypto in context – as one piece of a much larger risk picture.