Bitcoin and Ethereum near key supports as Zcash exploit triggers selloff
Crypto markets are on course for their worst week since July 2024, with Bitcoin (BTC) down about 14.5% on the week and Ether (ETH) down more than 17%. Ether is testing a critical $1,420 support—the level it bounced from in April 2025. A break below could push ETH toward 2022-style bear-market levels (below $900).
This decline is amplified by a zcash (ZEC) shock. ZEC fell more than 30% after a security researcher disclosed an exploit that could have minted “unlimited” tokens in its shielded pool. Privacy-coin peers also sold off: monero (XMR) lost about 12% and dash (DASH) dropped around 9%. Additional pressure came from BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes, who said his firm sold its entire ZEC allocation.
On the demand side, spot volume appears weak: CryptoQuant cites April spot trading volume of $679 billion, the lowest monthly level since October 2023. On derivatives, the BTC setup has turned defensive—open interest fell about 15% to $17B and funding flipped to flat/negative across venues. Coinglass shows roughly $1.2B in liquidations in 24 hours, with BTC, ETH and ZEC the largest contributors.
Traders should watch BTC’s key liquidation zone around $60,900 and ETH’s $1,420 level, as crypto downside momentum is currently being confirmed by both spot weakness and derivatives deleveraging.
Bearish
The article frames a coordinated downside in crypto: spot demand is weak, derivatives positioning is deleveraging, and a discrete ZEC security shock is spilling into broader risk assets.
Near-term, the bearish catalyst stack is clear. ETH is testing a historically important $1,420 bounce level; when support fails in a deleveraging tape, it often accelerates downside as stops trigger and hedges roll over. The reported $1.2B liquidations and the shift of BTC funding toward negative/flat typically reflect forced selling and reduced risk appetite.
Medium/long-term, the risk is that the market fails to reclaim key levels quickly. The “worst week since July 2024” backdrop and low monthly spot volume suggest buyers are not stepping in aggressively. Historically, episodes where a major support breaks while open interest falls (a sign that leverage is being withdrawn) tend to prolong consolidation or deepen bear phases rather than immediately revert.
While an oversold RSI can support a relief bounce, the current drivers—crypto weakness in spot, defensive options skew, and the Zcash exploit contagion into privacy coins—keep the probability higher that rallies will be sold until BTC/ETH reclaim key thresholds.