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Cryptocurrency's extended sell-off bled through to equity markets as crypto-adjacent companies saw losses in pre-market trading on Monday.
Strategy (MSTR) and Coinbase (COIN) both fell over 5%, while bitcoin mining firms MARA Holdings (MARA), Riot Platforms (RIOT), Core Scientific (CORZ) and CleanSpark (CLSK) traded lower by at least 2.5%.
Coinbase's slide to under $205 compounded the crypto exchange's woes as it failed to make the cut for inclusion on the S&P 500 in the index's latest rebalancing.
Bitcoin fell as low as $80,226, with the leading altcoins also registering significant declines as the threat of tariffs being imposed by President Trump have weighed on risk assets like crypto and equities.
This bearish atmosphere has culminated in the crypto fear and greed index falling to a multiyear low of 17, indicating "extreme fear."
European Central Bank President Christine Largarde has said the ECB is looking to finish the preparation phase of the digital euro by October 2025. Though, lawmakers recently raised doubts on whether a digital euro can take flight according to a Reuters report on Monday.
Lawmakers are hesitant to trust the ECB with the running of a digital euro following an outage that occurred with the Target 2 (T2) payment system last month where it could not settle transactions for a day. T2 handles big transactions. Though an ECB official said, according to the Reuters report, the digital euro would be similar to its instant payments system TIPS which is 24/7 and handles smaller transactions.
"The recent outage doesn’t undermine the robustness of the digital euro infrastructure, which is being designed to guarantee that payments continue to function smoothly for users, even when technical issues arise," an ECB spokesperson said after this article was published.
The ECB is keen to ensure the digital euro goes live.
"Fabio Panetta on the Board and then Piero Cipollone, who has replaced Fabio, have taken the lead together with a very good team, which is focused on accelerating the pace and hopefully campaigning enough with all the stakeholders – meaning the European Parliament, European Council, European Commission – so that we can eventually, not put to bed, but put to reality this digital euro," Lagarde said at a press conference on Friday.
The ECB is aiming to finish the preparation phase of the digital euro by October, the ECB spokesperson clarified. The preparation phase began in November 2023. During this phase the ECB will be testing and discussing with various stakeholders, as well as developing a rulebook for the digital euro.
A decision by the EU's Governing Council on whether or not to issue a digital euro is expected to occur after legislation takes effect. The Governing Council includes Lagarde, Panetta alongside other members of the ECB board plus the governors of national central banks.
The digital euro - which would be the EU's central bank digital currency (CBDC) - a digital token that a central bank issues - has been met with different viewpoints throughout the years. Some countries like Spain in the past have not seen a digital euro as something that their nation needs.
Lagarde emphasised that the need is pressing.
"I think it is critically important, and for the agnostics or the sceptics, it now seems more relevant and more imperative than ever before, both on the wholesale and on the retail level," Lagarde said.
Should the EU decide to issue a digital euro it will be following in the steps of countries like the Bahamas, Jamaica and Nigeria who have launched their CBDC's and veering away from the U.S.'s stance to not produce one.
CORRECTION (March 10, 2025, 15:45 UTC): Adds comments from European Central Bank spokesperson clarifying Lagarde's remarks about an October 2025 deadline.
Since President Trump was inaugurated on Jan. 20, bitcoin (BTC) has dropped from $109,000 to $80,000, making it a classic "sell the news" event. The correction has continued since the digital assets summit on Friday.
While the price action may dictate short-term bearishness, bitcoin bulls could view it as a long-term positive catalyst, as the U.S. administration has shifted from a hostile stance under the previous administration to a more favorable one. However, the lack of immediate buying pressure suggests short-term weakness.
A similar price action occurred during the much-anticipated launch of U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs in January 2024. From October 2023 to January 2024, bitcoin surged from $25,000 to $49,000—over a 40% rally. However, the launch marked a local top, as the price subsequently declined by 20% over the following weeks before eventually reaching new all-time highs above $73,000 in March.
This time, after President Trump won the U.S. election in November, bitcoin rallied 60%, hitting an all-time high of $109,000 in January before undergoing a nearly 30% correction.
The common pattern in both instances is that bullish news triggered a local top in bitcoin’s price, followed by a significant correction. The next variable is will bitcoin start to move higher after this correction has finished, with a lot depending on the macro landscape.
Singapore Exchange Ltd. (SGX) is set to introduce bitcoin (BTC) perpetual futures in the second half of 2025, marking a significant step for the traditional exchange into the crypto derivatives market, the exchange said.
These contracts, designed for institutional clients and professional investors, will not be accessible to retail traders. Bloomberg first reported on SGX's bitcoin perpetuals plan.
“SGX Group is leading the way in the burgeoning international institutional crypto market with perpetual futures. In a space where confidence and credibility make all the difference, our innovative offering on a trusted, regulated platform will significantly expand institutional market access. While subject to due regulatory process, initial feedback on our product has been positive from both DeFi and TradFi participants,” the company said in a statement.
SGX's move aligns with a broader trend among traditional exchanges embracing cryptocurrency derivatives. Japan's Osaka Dojima Exchange Inc. is also seeking approval to list bitcoin futures, reflecting growing institutional interest in digital assets, particularly amid pro-crypto policies from the U.S. government.
The planned bitcoin perpetual futures are still subject to due regulatory process with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Unlike traditional futures, perpetual contracts have no expiration date, allowing traders to speculate on price movements continuously. SGX aims to provide a secure and regulated alternative for crypto trading, leveraging its Aa2 rating from Moody’s.
This initiative could enhance institutional market participation in cryptocurrency while addressing credit risks associated with unregulated crypto exchanges like Binance and OKX.
UPDATE (March 10, 12:30 UTC): Updates sourcing, adds statement from SGX.
Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk’s full AI Policy.
The Senate of Utah, seen by some observers as being the frontrunner to establish a bitcoin reserve, passed a Bitcoin bill that excluded provision for the state treasurer to invest in the largest cryptocurrency.
Instead it provides the state's residents with basic custody protections and establishes the right to mine bitcoin (BTC), operate nodes and participate in staking, along with other various other provisions.
The senate's passing of the bill on March 7 means it now passes to Governor Spencer Gox to be signed into law.