Ether briefly touched $3,400 on Wednesday before a two‑day 4% pullback, while derivatives positioning stayed neutral‑to‑bearish. A 4% annualized futures basis and a 6% put premium highlight caution, as lower fees and softer DApps activity weigh on sentiment. U.S. spot ETF flows have been modest since Jan. 7.

On Thursday, Bitcoin's price hovered near $95,500 after retreating from $97,900, even as an 8% three-day rally liquidated $465 million in short futures positions. The perpetual futures funding rate sat at 4%, below typical neutral levels, highlighting soft retail demand while institutional flows into spot ETFs and corporate treasury purchases expanded to over $225 billion in BTC exposure. Broader macro uncertainty around the Federal Reserve's independence and tensions involving Iran have added to traders' caution despite strong stock and precious metal performance.

Bitcoin rallied after $840 million flowed into spot ETFs on Monday and Tuesday, and Wednesday’s 5.5% jump lifted price to a two‑month high near $97,000. Options skew sits at 4% with puts priced richer, $370 million in short liquidations hit over two days, and macro risks plus weaker equities are capping momentum.

Bitcoin briefly rose above $92,000 on Monday after US federal prosecutors opened a criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Despite the price pop, Bitcoin spot ETFs saw $1.38 billion in net outflows over four straight sessions, and futures basis remained near 5%, signaling cautious positioning.

Bitcoin climbed back above $90,000 on Saturday, reaching its highest level since mid-December while broader tech stocks showed signs of strain. Futures basis, options skew and more than $900 million in recent spot ETF outflows indicate limited appetite for leveraged upside exposure, suggesting traders remain wary about a sustained move beyond current resistance.

Aggregate Bitcoin options open interest rose to $49 billion in December 2025 from $39 billion in December 2024. As the BTC 2‑month futures premium fell below 10% by February 2025 and struggled to stay above 5% by November, funds pivoted from basis trades to covered calls, sparking debate over whether option income strategies are capping upside.

Ether has been moving in a tight band around $2,900 while repeatedly failing to reclaim the $3,000 mark, as derivatives data and ETF flows show limited appetite for leveraged long exposure. Network fees have fallen even as on-chain activity and DApp usage remain flat, and ongoing net outflows from Ether ETFs are further weighing on sentiment heading toward 2026. Analysts note that a durable recovery for ETH likely hinges on stronger Ethereum network demand and more robust decentralized application activity.

Bitcoin's price was rejected near $90,000, coinciding with roughly $100 million in leveraged liquidations and renewed demand for gold and US Treasurys. At the same time, lower rates and fresh record highs in the S&P 500 have made traditional markets more attractive, while falling hash rate, tighter miner margins and discounts on listed Bitcoin reserve firms have clouded BTC's appeal as digital gold.

Bitcoin futures open interest on major exchanges dropped to $42 billion, the lowest level in eight months, while BTC again failed to hold above $89,000. Despite roughly $825 million in net outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs and stronger demand for safe haven assets like gold and silver, futures basis and options skew indicate only limited downside risk for BTC around the $85,000 support area.