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Bitcoin opened the month with a sharp sell-off, continuing the weakness that began in January. The largest cryptocurrency briefly slid toward the $60,000 level a few days after trading around $90,000. The decline weighed on the broader crypto market valuation and triggered liquidations across leveraged positions.
At first, the move was widely framed as a macro-driven shift in risk sentiment, alongside reports of selling from spot ETF holders. However, market makers may have contributed materially to the price adjustment.
Market makers continuously place buy and sell orders to provide liquidity. They typically aim to earn the bid-ask spread and hedge their exposure using Bitcoin or related derivatives. In periods of high volatility, these hedges can unintentionally intensify price swings.
According to Markus Thielen of 10x Research, the dynamic likely occurred between Feb. 4 and Feb. 7, when Bitcoin fell from about $77,000 to near $60,000. Thielen said many options dealers were “short gamma” in the $60,000 to $75,000 range.
In practical terms, short gamma positioning can require dealers to sell more BTC as the price declines to manage risk. As Bitcoin moved below $75,000, these firms reportedly had to sell spot or futures contracts to rebalance. That additional selling pressure contributed to the drop and helped create a feedback loop in which falling prices led to more hedging and further selling.
Thielen estimated there was roughly $1.5 billion in negative gamma exposure across the $60,000 to $75,000 band. The concentration of this positioning may help explain why the sell-off accelerated and then stabilized once the selling pressure was absorbed near $60,000.
This kind of behavior is familiar in traditional markets, but it is becoming more visible in crypto as the options market expands. When dealers are short gamma, they tend to move in the same direction as the market, which can intensify both sell-offs and rallies.
Thielen also noted that the effect is not always bearish. In late 2023, similar positioning above $36,000 coincided with market makers buying as prices rose, supporting Bitcoin’s move above $40,000.
The episode suggests Bitcoin’s momentum is increasingly influenced not only by sentiment and headlines, but also by the structure of the derivatives market and the positioning of options dealers.
Separately, the article said some large-scale holders are reallocating toward emerging projects. It highlighted Minotaurus (MTAUR), describing it as a blockchain-based game where players explore mazes, battle enemies, and collect treasures.
Minotaurus’ native token, MTAUR, was cited at 0.00012663 USDT. The article claimed that acquiring approximately 790,000 MTAUR at current rates could result in a value near 10,000 USDT if MTAUR reaches 0.012 USDT.
The article also stated that participants can explore MTAUR before the next phase of its distribution begins.
Information in this article is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. Crypto Economy is not affiliated with the project. The cryptocurrency market is highly volatile and can involve significant risks. Readers are advised to conduct their own analysis.
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