Total notional volume from last Monday to Friday came in at $1.84 billion, on pace with the previous week.

Breaking it down per coin, bitcoin volume came in at $974 million, 5% lower than the previous week. Ether volume came in at $270 million, 1% higher than the week earlier.

Total notional volume over the past 30 days comes in at $6.2 billion.

Looking at average position size over the past 30 days, we’re seeing average bitcoin position size at $5,829 and average position size for ether at $1,343.

Volatility is consolidating after a sharp rise out from extremely subdued readings and multi-month lows. We’re looking at average daily ranges in bitcoin and ether of $2,249 and $93 respectively.

The tone across digital asset markets improved dramatically over the course of August, with crypto delivering its strongest and most convincing advance of the year. Bitcoin surged back above $80,000 for the first time since May, while Ethereum and a broad range of digital assets also recorded powerful gains.

The scale of the move was particularly notable given the exceptionally difficult first half of the year and the persistent caution that had defined investor behavior coming into the month. Although Bitcoin and Ethereum remain below the record highs reached in late 2025, August represented an important change in market character, with capital returning to the asset class and confidence improving considerably across the ecosystem.

Ethereum’s performance added further credibility to the recovery. ETH outperformed Bitcoin during the month, extending the improvement in relative strength that first became visible in July and encouraging broader participation across digital assets. This matters because sustained crypto recoveries have historically required more than strength in Bitcoin alone.

They have typically been accompanied by a willingness among investors to move further out the risk spectrum as confidence improves. The simultaneous strength in Bitcoin, Ethereum and other leading digital assets suggests August was not simply a defensive rotation into Bitcoin, but a broader reassessment of the opportunity across crypto.

The rally was supported by an unusually powerful combination of crypto-specific and macroeconomic catalysts. Renewed optimism surrounding US market-structure legislation helped revive expectations for greater regulatory clarity, while institutional demand and exchange-traded fund flows showed signs of strengthening as confidence returned.

The recovery itself also helped improve sentiment, attracting sidelined capital back into the market and reinforcing the view that much of the speculative excess and forced selling from earlier in the year had already been absorbed. Together, these developments produced a far healthier demand backdrop than the market had experienced during the first half of 2026.

The regulatory and institutional backdrop continues to evolve in a constructive direction. Progress toward a clearer US framework for digital assets remains important, but the structural investment case no longer depends on the timing or outcome of any single piece of legislation. Traditional financial institutions continue to expand their digital asset capabilities, tokenization initiatives are accelerating, and the infrastructure supporting institutional participation continues to mature.

August’s rally demonstrated how quickly capital can return when improving fundamentals are accompanied by greater policy confidence. Even if the legislative process takes longer than markets would prefer, the broader direction of travel remains supportive of increased participation and adoption.

Macro conditions also played an important role during the month. The US Treasury’s decision to increase purchases of longer-dated government debt helped ease pressure on yields, weighed on the dollar and reignited concerns surrounding currency depreciation and the sustainability of rising public debt. This provided a favorable environment for scarce assets such as Bitcoin and gold, reinforcing Bitcoin’s appeal not only as a high-growth technology asset but also as a potential hedge against monetary and fiscal dilution.

Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s hawkish Jackson Hole address subsequently drove the dollar and short-dated Treasury yields higher and triggered a late-month pullback across crypto. However, the resilience of the broader monthly advance suggests digital assets may no longer require an entirely benign macro environment to attract meaningful demand.

Our broader investment thesis has become considerably more constructive following the developments of the past month. August provided the clearest evidence this year that confidence is returning to digital assets, supported by renewed institutional demand, broader market participation, improving regulatory prospects and a growing appreciation of Bitcoin’s role in an environment of rising debt and currency-depreciation concerns.

Near-term volatility should still be expected, particularly with the Federal Reserve outlook unresolved and markets reassessing the possibility of additional tightening. Nevertheless, we believe the balance of risks has shifted meaningfully in favor of the asset class. As has often been the case in previous cycles, by the time the broader market becomes fully convinced that conditions have changed, a meaningful portion of the recovery has already taken place.