Black Friday rout: Bitcoin falls to $60k as BlackRock IBIT posts $10B daily volume
Bitcoin plunged toward the $60,000 level during a global risk-asset sell-off on Feb 6, 2026, wiping significant value from the crypto market while BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF (iShares Bitcoin Trust, IBIT) recorded an unprecedented single-day trading volume of about $10 billion. BTC fell roughly 15% intraday from about $73,100 to near $62,400, dragging total crypto market capitalization from over $3 trillion at end-January to roughly $2.16 trillion. IBIT — the largest spot BTC ETF with AUM near $56 billion — set a new daily volume record after previously peaking near $8 billion. The strong ETF trading contrasted with price declines, highlighting institutional activity amid panic selling. Major impacts included a sharp quarterly hit for Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy), which reported roughly $17.4 billion in operating losses and a $12.6 billion net loss attributed mainly to unrealized BTC write-downs; its stock dropped steeply. Other market stress signals: broad altcoin weakness (XRP down ~25%), WBTC sales by an institutional address (World Liberty Finance selling 100 WBTC for USDC), and broader risk-off moves in equities and precious metals. For traders: elevated volatility, high ETF flow activity, and large unrealized losses at major holders increase liquidation and margin risk in the short term, while continued institutional appetite for spot ETFs may support longer-term demand. This is market information, not investment advice.
Bearish
The news points to a bearish market impulse. A near-15% intraday BTC drop, broad altcoin weakness, and large unrealized losses at major holders (Strategy) increase short-term downside risk through margin calls and forced selling. High IBIT volume shows strong institutional trading activity, but heavy volume during a price crash often signals distribution rather than buying support. Historical parallels: prior steep BTC corrections coinciding with concentrated selling by large holders and high ETF/ETF-like flows (for example 2021–2022 drawdowns and MicroStrategy-marked volatility) led to cascades of liquidations and multi-week/month drawdowns. In the short term, expect elevated volatility, lower liquidity at extreme levels, and higher probability of further declines or range-bound action until clear buy-side absorption emerges. In the medium-to-long term, sustained institutional demand via spot ETFs could provide a support floor, but timing and magnitude depend on macro risk sentiment and whether large holders stop selling. Therefore, immediate impact is bearish for price action, while structural developments (ETF adoption) remain a neutral-to-moderately-bullish long-term factor.