How a slowdown in crypto rally is weighing heavy on exchanges – The National

How a slowdown in crypto rally is weighing heavy on exchanges – The National

During the brutal cryptocurrency sell-off last month, volumes also tumbled — a development that doesn’t bode well for exchanges that trade the digital tokens.

Total spot volume slumped to $1.8 trillion in January, a decline of more than 30 per cent from the previous month, according to a report from CryptoCompare. That was the lowest turnover since the end of 2020. Even at its intra-month peak of $91 billion on January 24, trading was down nearly 50 per cent from December.

“It’s just an exceptionally quiet, fearsome and uncertain time in crypto,” said Ed Hindi, chief investment officer and co-founder of Tyr Capital. “Smart money, as they say, doesn’t sleep, it doesn’t take holidays. But retail traders in crypto, they do take a break, especially when they get hurt,” he said, referring to an industry term for institutional and other bigger players.