Bitcoin slides Friday as risk-off mood persists, but majors hold weekly gains

• Bitcoin and major cryptocurrencies slipped alongside U.S. equities after Nvidia’s earnings-fueled pullback, though Bitcoin remains slightly positive for the week and confined to a tight trading range.
• Analysts say the latest drop appears to be a leverage flush and positioning cleanup rather than a structural trend reversal, with buyers stepping back in after overnight selling.
• Altcoins have generally outperformed Bitcoin on a weekly basis, with Cardano, Solana, Ethereum and BNB posting solid gains even as XRP lags, underscoring that risk appetite in crypto persists amid shifting global equity flows.

Bitcoin and the broader crypto market headed into Friday on the back foot, with most major tokens posting losses over the last 24 hours as traders continued to de-risk alongside equities following Nvidia's earnings-driven pullback.

Bitcoin was trading around $67,766 at the time of writing, down 1.5% on the day but still clinging to a 0.6% gain on the week. Ethereum mirrored the move, off 1.5% in 24 hours to trade just above $2,047. Both remain stuck in a narrow range that has defined price action since the Feb. 5 crash, with Wednesday's push toward $70,000 marking the upper boundary and this week's lows testing the middle.

The selling pressure, however, looks more like a leverage flush than a structural breakdown. Hourly returns across the board were green Friday morning, meaning the bulk of the drawdown happened overnight and buyers have quietly stepped back in at these levels.

"What you're seeing right now is Bitcoin trading with the broader risk market," said Daniel Reis-Faria, CEO of ZeroStack. "Nasdaq fell after Nvidia earnings, and crypto followed. Bitcoin pushed closer to $70,000 pretty quickly, and when momentum in equities stalls, that fast money comes off just as quickly in Bitcoin."

Reis-Faria sees the move as positioning cleanup rather than a trend reversal. "A lot of leverage came back into the system on that push higher, and when stocks start selling, crypto is usually the first place people de-risk. Volatility is elevated because liquidity is tight across the board."

Zoom out to the weekly chart and the picture looks considerably healthier. Cardano led major assets with a 7% gain over seven days. Solana added 5.5%, Ethereum 4.8%, and BNB 4.3%, all outpacing Bitcoin's comparatively modest weekly return and suggesting altcoin appetite remains intact beneath the surface noise.

XRP was the notable exception, down 3.7% in 24 hours and the only top asset in the red on a 7-day basis at -0.1%. The underperformance stands out given that most altcoins absorbed the same macro headwinds without giving back weekly gains.

The broader macro backdrop adds context. Asian equities are on track for their best February since 1998, led by South Korean tech names up roughly 20% this month as investors rotated into AI infrastructure plays.

That rally has drawn capital away from U.S. markets, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index set to outperform the S&P 500 for a third consecutive month.

For crypto, the throughline is the same one it has been for weeks. "We're still in the same range we've been in," Reis-Faria said. "Until we see consistent new demand, these moves are going to keep happening. Bitcoin trades like a macro asset. When equities pull back, Bitcoin pulls back."

• Large bitcoin ETF holders and corporate treasuries are aggressively buying six- and 12-month put options at $60,000 or below as insurance against a potential price drop, Deribit said.
• Open interest in $60,000 bitcoin puts on Deribit has climbed to about $1.5 billion, the highest across all strikes and expiries,

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