Bitcoin Slides Below $84,000 Support Over $1bn ETF Outflows

By Motolani Oseni

2 February 2026

Business

Bitcoin tumbled into the $82,000 range as heavy exchange-traded fund (ETF) outflows and tightening dollar liquidity triggered broad risk-off positioning across digital asset markets, dragging total cryptocurrency market capitalisation down to about $2.8 trillion.

BTC was trading around $82,600 at press time after briefly breaking below the key $84,000 technical support level, a move analysts described as a critical “binary test” for near-term direction.

The decline came as trading activity thinned sharply, with 24-hour volumes falling 41 per cent to roughly $49 billion, reflecting reduced conviction from both buyers and sellers.

Pressure intensified after U.S. spot crypto ETFs recorded nearly $1 billion in net redemptions in a single day, one of the heaviest outflow sessions of the year. Bitcoin-focused ETFs accounted for about $818 million of the withdrawals, while Ethereum products saw roughly $156 million exit, with other major tokens, including XRP, also facing sizeable redemptions.

Analysts said the scale and breadth of the outflows, including from large issuers such as BlackRock and Fidelity, signalled a clear shift toward capital preservation.

Sentiment was further weighed by a brief, technical partial shutdown of the U.S. government after lawmakers missed a funding deadline. Although the Senate passed a deal and a House vote is expected shortly, the episode added another layer of macro uncertainty to already fragile market psychology.

Market participants noted that shutdown headlines landing over a weekend, when order books are thinner, tend to amplify price swings as traders cut exposure rather than add risk.

Beyond headlines, liquidity dynamics are also tightening. Analysts pointed to the U.S. Treasury’s efforts to rebuild its cash balance in the Treasury General Account by roughly $200 billion, a move that effectively draws dollars out of the financial system. Reduced system liquidity typically weighs on speculative assets, and the squeeze has coincided with a sharp crypto sell-off and more than $1.7 billion in recent leveraged liquidations.

While most analysts see the shutdown itself as a short-lived sentiment shock rather than a lasting economic hit, they warn that the combination of ETF outflows, thinner liquidity and cautious positioning could keep Bitcoin and major altcoins under pressure in the near term, especially if dip-buying remains subdued.