A new downturn in the cryptocurrency market is unfolding, with significant price drops for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Dogecoin. According to recent data, Bitcoin has fallen below the critical $95,000 mark, and this decline has cascaded to altcoins—Ethereum has dropped by more than 4%, Solana by over 9%, and Dogecoin by upwards of 7% in the past 24 hours.
This decline is occurring amid a backdrop of market uncertainty, prompting many investors to remain on the sidelines. Contributing to this cautious sentiment are factors such as proposed tariffs by Donald Trump and the U.S. Federal Reserve’s quantitative tightening policies, which suggest that interest rate cuts are unlikely in the near future. Additionally, uncertainty over whether a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve will be implemented to support Bitcoin’s price has added to the unease.
The situation is further complicated by a recent downturn in the U.S. stock market—exemplified by a nearly 2% drop in the S&P 500 last Friday, marking its worst performance in two months—which may also be influencing the crypto market, given Bitcoin’s historical correlation with U.S. equities.
Other developments fueling the bearish outlook include the Bybit hack, which has raised fresh security concerns within the crypto community, and an overleveraged market as indicated by a surge in long positions below $91,000. Some analysts believe that once these positions are liquidated, Bitcoin might rebound, although it still needs time to reset its short-term momentum indicators.
Solana, in particular, is facing one of the sharpest declines. This is largely due to an upcoming token unlock of 11.2 million SOL—valued at approximately $1.78 billion—scheduled for March 1. Many of these tokens are held by institutional investors, such as Galaxy Digital, who acquired them at a discount during the FTX estate auction. As these investors begin to offload their positions, Solana is expected to encounter considerable selling pressure, a trend that has already been observed with significant dumps, including a recent sale of 100,000 SOL by Binance via market maker Wintermute.
