Bitcoin's attempt to break higher did not last. After touching about $84,840 on Wednesday, October 21, BTC reversed on Thursday and closed around $81,300, a daily drop of roughly 3.2% based on Kraken daily candles. On the morning of Friday, October 23, Bitcoin was trading near $81,500 to $81,700, according to CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap data.
Altcoins fell further than Bitcoin, and decentralized finance (DeFi) tokens took the biggest hit. This market update looks at what moved prices, what the derivatives data shows and which events could shape the next few days.
What drove the sell-off
The pressure came largely from outside crypto. CoinDesk reported that mixed earnings from Tesla and Meta revived doubts about heavy spending on artificial intelligence, which weighed on technology stocks. On October 22, Nasdaq 100 futures fell about 1.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped more than 3%, South Korea's Kospi lost 3.5% and Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 2.7%.
Crypto has traded closely with tech stocks for much of 2026, so a risk-off day in equities tends to spill over. At the same time, US Treasury yields moved sharply. The 10-year yield fell more than 10 basis points to near 5% on Thursday, according to Trading Economics.
DeFi tokens led the decline
The CoinDesk DeFi index slid about 5.6% on October 22, compared with a 2.5% drop in the CoinDesk 5, which tracks the largest assets. Notable moves reported by CoinDesk:
- Curve (CRV) fell 8.2% to about 37 cents, though it was still up around 4% over the week.
- Ethena (ENA) lost 7.2%, extending a decline of about 25% from its late-September peak.
- Uniswap (UNI) dropped 5%, leaving it down around 20% in October, even though the protocol launched aggregator hooks the same day.
- Ether (ETH) lost 2.6% to near $2,400, and Solana (SOL) fell 2.4% to around $104 even as its Alpenglow upgrade went live.
Monero (XMR) was a rare gainer, adding about 4.9% to around $651. CoinDesk flagged that XMR funding rates were running at around 70% annualized, a sign that leveraged long positions were crowded.
What the derivatives data shows
The futures market was busy but not reckless. CoinDesk's data showed crypto derivatives volume up 19% to $226.6 billion, while open interest fell 2.46% to $141.8 billion. Liquidations rose to about $431 million over 24 hours. In short, traders were mostly closing positions rather than opening new ones, and losses hit both longs and shorts.
Other signals worth noting:
- Funding rates on BTC and ETH were barely positive, so there was no crowded bet in either direction.
- Implied volatility for both BTC and ETH options stayed near 2026 lows, meaning options traders were not paying up for big moves.
- On Deribit, the most traded options were $85,000 and $86,000 Bitcoin calls expiring October 30, while short-dated puts still cost more than calls.
- The CoinGecko Fear and Greed index stood at 51, a neutral reading.
ETF flows stayed positive
Despite the price drop, demand through US spot Bitcoin ETFs held up earlier in the week. Farside data showed inflows of about $526.7 million on October 19, $23.2 million on October 20 and $524.8 million on October 21, roughly $1.07 billion over three days. Data for October 22 was not yet available at the time of writing.
Key dates for the week ahead
- October 27-28: The US Federal Reserve's FOMC meeting. Rate expectations and the tone of the statement can move both stocks and crypto.
- October 29: Curve DAO vote on a new oracle-priced pool design closes.
- October 30: Large Bitcoin and Ether options expiries on Deribit.
- October 31: Celestia (TIA) unlock of 5.58 million tokens, according to CoinDesk.
- January 18, 2027: Effective date of the OCC's GENIUS Act stablecoin rule, finalized on October 21.
Market scenarios, not predictions
Here are three ways the next week could play out, based on the levels in recent price data:
- Range continues: BTC keeps trading roughly between $80,500 and $85,000, the band it has held for most of the past week, while traders wait for the FOMC.
- Recovery attempt: Equities stabilize, ETF inflows continue and BTC retests the $84,000 to $85,000 area that capped Wednesday's rally.
- Further downside: Pressure on tech stocks deepens and BTC loses the $80,500 to $80,800 area that has acted as support over the past week.
None of these is a forecast. They are a simple way to plan instead of reacting to every candle.
What this means for DEX users
Sharp, risk-off days often widen spreads and increase slippage on smaller tokens, and DeFi tokens showed the largest swings this week. If you plan to rebalance, compare the final amount received after fees, use a sensible slippage setting and pay attention to network costs. Many traders also move part of a volatile position into stablecoins during uncertain weeks. You can swap supported assets on AviorSwap, which lists 17+ networks, but always double-check the network and the receiving address before confirming any transfer.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Crypto prices are volatile, and you should only trade what you can afford to lose.