LMAX Digital volumes continue to fall victim to some exceptionally tight ranges in crypto markets. Total notional volume for Wednesday came in at just $211 million, 37% below 30-day average volume.

Bitcoin volume printed $102 million on Wednesday, 44% below 30-day average volume. Ether came in at $90 million, 17% below 30-day average volume.

Looking at average position size over the past 30 days, we’re seeing average bitcoin position size at $5,776 and average position size for ether at 2,602.

Volatility has been absent from the market for much of 2022 and is still trending down at yearly low levels. We’re looking at average daily ranges in bitcoin and ether of $627 and $57 respectively.

The slow go for crypto continues into the end of the week. Volatility in bitcoin and ether sits at yearly and multi-month lows, and we remain confined to exceptionally tight ranges. All of this warns of a major breakout ahead, though at this stage, there is no clear directional insight.

Technically speaking, the fact that the consolidation has been happening within a downtrend, classifies this as a bearish consolidation, with risk for another drop in 2022. We wouldn’t rule out the possibility for this drop to lead to a bitcoin decline all  the way down into the $10k area.

Fundamentally, the signs have been ominous. There is plenty of concern about the outlook for the global economy, and plenty of concern around the disconnect between Federal Reserve monetary policy and monetary policy at the other major central banks. Throw in added uncertainty within the crypto space around regulation, and everything points to the possibility for another move lower.

Of course, having said all of this, we also continue to point to just how impressive and resilient crypto assets have been in recent weeks, despite ongoing downside pressure on traditional risk assets. While stocks and currencies have extended declines against the Buck, bitcoin and ether have failed to break to fresh yearly lows.

This doesn’t mean we don’t see more declines in crypto, but it does suggest there is more to these markets than simply trading alongside correlations with risk sentiment.