Digital assets sink across the board, with bitcoin dropping to $68,000.

Crypto markets opened the week under pressure as traders prepared for a slate of high-impact U.S. economic releases, including the Federal Reserve’s January meeting minutes and the core PCE inflation report.

Bitcoin (BTC) hovered near $68,200 at press time, down roughly 3% over the past 24 hours. Broader market losses were more pronounced, with major tokens such as XRP, ether (ETH) and dogecoin (DOGE) posting sharper declines.

The sell-off was widespread, with about 85 of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization trading lower. Privacy-focused tokens monero (XMR) and zcash (ZEC) dropped around 10% and 8%, respectively. Smart contract platforms also weakened, as the CoinDesk Smart Contract Platform Select Capped Index slid nearly 6%, deepening its year-to-date loss to 28%.

The pullback comes despite last week’s softer inflation data in the U.S., which had briefly revived optimism for monetary easing. Consumer price index (CPI) growth slowed to 2.4% year-on-year in January from 2.7% in December, strengthening expectations for at least two quarter-point rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this year. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.05%, its lowest level since early December.

Bitcoin initially rallied on the news, climbing from roughly $66,800 late last week to above $70,000 over the weekend. However, the move proved short-lived, with prices failing to consolidate above the $70,000 mark.

Vikram Subburaj, CEO of India-based exchange Giottus, said uneven demand and continued deleveraging in derivatives markets are preventing sustained upside.

“Risk appetite remains selective, and macro cross-currents are keeping traders cautious,” Subburaj said. “Derivatives markets still appear to be deleveraging aggressively. Rallies are fading quickly, and dip buying is concentrated only around clear technical levels.”

Market participants are now focused on the upcoming macro data for direction. The Fed’s meeting minutes could provide insight into policymakers’ thinking, while the core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index — the Fed’s preferred inflation measure — is expected to be the week’s key catalyst.

Dessislava Ianeva, a dispatch analyst at Nexo, said investors will closely analyze the PCE data for confirmation that inflation is moderating toward the central bank’s 2% target. Both the monthly pace of price growth and the year-over-year trend will be critical for shaping expectations around the timing and scale of rate cuts.

Meanwhile, developments in currency markets may also influence crypto sentiment. Mark Nash of Jupiter Asset Management, previously a vocal yen bear, has turned bullish on the Japanese currency, projecting an 8–9% appreciation, particularly versus the Swiss franc.

That shift is noteworthy because bitcoin has shown a strong positive correlation with the yen in recent months. A strengthening yen could therefore provide support for bitcoin, even as broader macro uncertainty continues to weigh on digital assets.

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