Crypto Market Surges: BTC, ETH, and Altcoins Lead Broad Rally on Macro Tailwinds

I. Crypto Market Overview

Key Takeaways

Macro Environment

The Federal Reserve maintains a data-dependent stance, keeping rates elevated as inflation remains above target. Australia's higher-than-expected CPI delays RBA cuts, dampening risk appetite for crypto. The Bank of England's hawkish tone and Swiss Franc strength drive capital rotation, impacting crypto-fiat flows.

Crypto Market

The crypto market rallied sharply in the past 12 hours, led by BTC up 5.86% to $66,548 and ETH up 8.67% to $1,971.9, driven by renewed risk appetite and strong DeFi activity. Altcoins outperformed, with SOL up 10.53%, DOT up 19.05%, MORPHO up 24.82%, and VIRTUAL up 20.96%, fueled by ecosystem growth and sector rotation.

Today's Outlook

Key US macro data releases, including the PCE Price Index and GDP Price Index, may drive volatility and shape crypto market sentiment. The SEC Chairman's address at the DC Blockchain Summit keeps regulatory focus high, with potential implications for token issuers and compliance.

Fear and Greed Index

86.00% Annual Percentile

11 Fear

Total Crypto Market Cap

$2.29T

5.00%

Total Market Trading Volume

$93.87B

6.33%

Altcoin Season Index

50.00%

Quarterly Percentile

35 / 100

Total Futures Market Open Interest

3.24B

4.28%

Futures

382.08B

1.82%

Perpetuals

II. Industry Updates

Macro-economic Policies

Federal Reserve officials signal no imminent change to interest rates, maintaining a data-dependent approach as inflation remains above target. This stance keeps borrowing costs elevated, limiting BTC and DeFi liquidity expansion.

Australia's January CPI inflation surged to 3.8% year-over-year, exceeding expectations and delaying potential RBA rate cuts. Persistent inflation pressures could dampen risk appetite and reduce capital inflows into crypto markets.

The Bank of England's chief economist reaffirmed a hawkish stance, emphasizing the need to "bear down" on inflation. Sustained high rates in the UK may constrain GBP liquidity and impact crypto trading volumes denominated in sterling.

The Swiss Franc outperformed the US Dollar as the SNB maintained a cautious monetary policy, attracting safe-haven flows. This currency strength may drive capital rotation and affect cross-border crypto arbitrage strategies.

Eurozone and US policy divergence constrains EUR/USD upside, with the ECB signaling gradual easing and the Fed holding steady. Yield differentials and growth disparities may increase volatility in crypto-fiat pairs and impact DeFi FX pools.

Cryptocurrency Regulatory Trends

The UK Financial Conduct Authority has selected Revolut and three other firms for its stablecoin regulatory sandbox, with testing to begin in Q1 2026. Results will shape the UK's final stablecoin regulatory framework, impacting future compliance and market access.

South Korea will introduce mandatory asset disclosure for crypto influencers, requiring them to reveal holdings and compensation when providing investment advice. This aims to increase transparency and reduce market manipulation risks.

South Korean authorities arrested two individuals for stealing 22 bitcoins from a police evidence vault, exposing regulatory and operational gaps in crypto asset custody and highlighting the need for stricter law enforcement protocols.

The SEC Chairman is set to address the DC Blockchain Summit, despite ongoing litigation with event sponsor Unicoin. The case underscores persistent regulatory scrutiny and legal uncertainty for token issuers in the U.S. market.

MORPHO Labs (MORPHO): MORPHO surged 25% in 24h to $1.96 with $60.7M volume, driven by strong DeFi lending demand and high on-chain activity, ranking #67 by market cap.

Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL): VIRTUAL rose 21% in 24h to $0.70, with $183M trading volume, reflecting increased speculation and liquidity on new AI agent-powered DeFi protocols.

Polkadot (DOT): DOT jumped 19% in 24h to $1.47, trading $300M+, leading altcoin gains ahead of Nvidia earnings and benefiting from renewed cross-chain ecosystem interest.

Smart Money Movements

BlackRock deposited 1,134 BTC worth $74.18 million into Coinbase, signaling continued institutional accumulation of Bitcoin.

MicroStrategy's short interest surged to 14% of market cap, driven by arbitrage trades between its stock and spot Bitcoin ETFs, as MSTR shares declined 20% in 2025.

A Bitcoin whale accumulated over 270,000 BTC, valued at $23 billion, in the past month, while retail investors realized $3.2 billion in losses during the February correction.

Vitalik Buterin sold 17,000 ETH, worth approximately $43 million, over the past month amid a 37% drop in ETH price, reducing his wallet from 241,000 to 224,000 ETH.

FG Nexus sold 7,550 ETH for $14.06 million, incurring cumulative losses of $86.98 million after acquiring 50,600 ETH at an average price of $3,940 in 2025.

Events to Watch

Feb 25 (Wed)

US PCE Price Index (YoY, Jan) and GDP Price Index (Q4) released; key inflation and growth data may impact crypto market sentiment.

Feb 25 (Wed)

SEC Chairman Paul Atkins to address DC Blockchain Summit amid ongoing legal dispute with sponsor Unicoin; regulatory developments in focus.

Feb 26 (Thu)

21Shares Strategy Yield ETP to list on Euronext Amsterdam, offering exposure to Bitcoin treasury strategies for institutional investors.

Feb 28 (Sat)

Major token unlocks: Jupiter (JUP) to release over $36M in tokens; Grass to unlock $9.33M, potentially affecting token prices and liquidity.

III. Phemex Market Focus

New Listings

Feb 22: (OPN/USDT)

New Pre-Market futures trading pair OPNUSDT with hedge mode support and 20X leverage

Feb 13: (ESP/USDT)

Introducing Espresso(ESP) to the Phemex Spot Market with trading pair ESP/USDT

Feb 12: (AZTEC/USDT)

Introducing Aztec(AZTEC) to the Phemex Spot Market with trading pair AZTEC/USDT

Feb 12: (AZTEC/USDT)

New futures trading pair AZTECUSDT with hedge mode support and 20X leverage

Feb 11: (NVDAON/USDT)

Introducing NVIDIA Ondo Tokenized(NVDAON) to the Phemex Spot Market with trading pair NVDAON/USDT

Table of Contents

I. Crypto Market Overview

Key Takeaways

Macro Environment

Crypto Market

Today's Outlook

II. Industry Updates

Macro-economic Policies

Federal Reserve officials signal no imminent change to interest rates, maintaining a data-dependent approach as inflation remains above target. This stance keeps borrowing costs elevated, limiting BTC and DeFi liquidity expansion.

Australia's January CPI inflation surged to 3.8% year-over-year, exceeding expectations and delaying potential RBA rate cuts. Persistent inflation pressures could dampen risk appetite and reduce capital inflows into crypto markets.

The Bank of England's chief economist reaffirmed a hawkish stance, emphasizing the need to "bear down" on inflation. Sustained high rates in the UK may constrain GBP liquidity and impact crypto trading volumes denominated in sterling.

The Swiss Franc outperformed the US Dollar as the SNB maintained a cautious monetary policy, attracting safe-haven flows. This currency strength may drive capital rotation and affect cross-border crypto arbitrage strategies.

Eurozone and US policy divergence constrains EUR/USD upside, with the ECB signaling gradual easing and the Fed holding steady. Yield differentials and growth disparities may increase volatility in crypto-fiat pairs and impact DeFi FX pools.

Cryptocurrency Regulatory Trends

The UK Financial Conduct Authority has selected Revolut and three other firms for its stablecoin regulatory sandbox, with testing to begin in Q1 2026. Results will shape the UK's final stablecoin regulatory framework, impacting future compliance and market access.

South Korea will introduce mandatory asset disclosure for crypto influencers, requiring them to reveal holdings and compensation when providing investment advice. This aims to increase transparency and reduce market manipulation risks.

South Korean authorities arrested two individuals for stealing 22 bitcoins from a police evidence vault, exposing regulatory and operational gaps in crypto asset custody and highlighting the need for stricter law enforcement protocols.

The SEC Chairman is set to address the DC Blockchain Summit, despite ongoing litigation with event sponsor Unicoin. The case underscores persistent regulatory scrutiny and legal uncertainty for token issuers in the U.S. market.

Trending Tokens

MORPHO Labs (MORPHO): MORPHO surged 25% in 24h to $1.96 with $60.7M volume, driven by strong DeFi lending demand and high on-chain activity, ranking #67 by market cap.

Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL): VIRTUAL rose 21% in 24h to $0.70, with $183M trading volume, reflecting increased speculation and liquidity on new AI agent-powered DeFi protocols.

Polkadot (DOT): DOT jumped 19% in 24h to $1.47, trading $300M+, leading altcoin gains ahead of Nvidia earnings and benefiting from renewed cross-chain ecosystem interest.

Smart Money Movements

BlackRock deposited 1,134 BTC worth $74.18 million into Coinbase, signaling continued institutional accumulation of Bitcoin.

MicroStrategy's short interest surged to 14% of market cap, driven by arbitrage trades between its stock and spot Bitcoin ETFs, as MSTR shares declined 20% in 2025.

A Bitcoin whale accumulated over 270,000 BTC, valued at $23 billion, in the past month, while retail investors realized $3.2 billion in losses during the February correction.

Vitalik Buterin sold 17,000 ETH, worth approximately $43 million, over the past month amid a 37% drop in ETH price, reducing his wallet from 241,000 to 224,000 ETH.

FG Nexus sold 7,550 ETH for $14.06 million, incurring cumulative losses of $86.98 million after acquiring 50,600 ETH at an average price of $3,940 in 2025.

Events to Watch

Feb 25 (Wed)

Feb 28 (Sat)

III. Phemex Market Focus

New Listings

Phemex Promotions