Buterin Offloads ETH, Bitcoin Can’t Get Past $70,000, XRP Spot Buying Increases: This Week’s Crypto Recap

Bitcoin fooled us this week into believing a recovery is coming, but the positivity was not.

You see, BTC started the week as anyone would expect – with a downward move, which inevitably led to an abrupt crash on Monday, when the price dropped from above $67,000 to around $64,000. This was followed by an intraday dead cat bounce and an immediate continuation to below $63,000. The sentiment was bad, as was most of Crypto Twitter, but what followed raised a few eyebrows.

Bitcoin actually started to recover… notably. It rose from $63,000 to $70,000 in less than two days. And then came another sign that we are in the depths of crypto winter – the recovery was halted and the bears took control again, sending the price down to where we currently sit, just above $66K. In case you’re wondering, we’re still in a state of “extreme fear,” according to the popular Crypto Fear and Greed index, which means the masses are certainly not convinced that the worst is behind us. In fact, the most recent upturn has done little to improve overall sentiment.

Meanwhile, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin continues to sell ETH. To date, his total divestments amount to approximately 18,700 ETH, even though he previously stated that he plans to sell 16,384 ETH to fund the development of open source software and hardware, privacy tools, and security-critical infrastructure projects.

Elsewhere, we have some light at the end of the tunnel for XRP holders, with spot buying seemingly on the rise. While it has done little for the price so far, this could be a sign of a structural shift in XRP market dynamics. Bitrue reported a 212% increase in spot buying on February 26, most of which was linked to ETF inflows, indicating steady demand from funds.

Overall, the week started off depressing, then turned bullish and then returned right back to where it was at the beginning. The strength dissipates quickly as negative sentiment prevails, which is incredibly indicative of bear markets. That also makes it quite exciting to see what the next seven days have in store for us.

Market data

Market Cap: $2.35 trillion | 24H volume: $113 billion | BTC dominance: 56.1%

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BTC: $66,097 (-1.5%) | ETH: $1,947 (+0.2%) | XRP: $1.35 (-3.2%)

This week’s Crypto headlines you shouldn’t miss

Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan dismisses Jane Street’s blame for the Bitcoin dip. Matt Hougan, the chief investment officer at Bitwise, has dismissed claims that Jane Street is orchestrating Bitcoin’s ongoing decline. Instead, he said the current price action is typical of a “classic crypto winter.” Read more.

BSC costs hit multi-month lows as history indicates Bitcoin will recover. The Binance Smart Chain (BSC) saw total fees paid drop to $593,000, which is near the lowest network usage fees since at least August 2025. Read more.

2026 US midterms will be a potential turning point for crypto markets. The 2026 US midterm elections are approaching. Many see these as a potential catalyst linked to liquidity cycles in traditional financial markets, as well as a recovery in the broader cryptocurrency market. Read more.

Bitcoin’s recovery isn’t here yet – here’s what still needs to happen. Data shows that BTC is still trapped in a structurally defensive consolidation. This happens when the price fluctuates between $60,000 and $90,000. Therefore, for a recovery to take shape, the price must move above the upper limit. Read more.

Vitalik Buterin surpasses the sales target of 16,384 ETH with a total of $38 million in sales. Ethereum co-founder (and probably the most prominent person behind it), Vitalik Buterin, is dumping ETH. In fact, he has exceeded his previously stated plan to sell 16,384 ETH by almost 20%. Read more.

Wall Street moves on, and investors still don’t understand it, says Bitwise CIO. According to the CIO of Bitwise, investors often misinterpret what is actually happening in the market due to behavioral biases and thinking that Wall Street is already happening. Read more.

Charts

This week we have chart analysis of Ethereum, Ripple, Cardano, Binance Coin and Hyperliquid – click here for the full price analysis.