LMAX Digital volumes have been steady all week. Total notional volume for Wednesday came in at $381 million, 2% below 30-day average volume.

Bitcoin volume printed $239 million, 11% above 30-day average volume. Ether volume came in at $83 million, 3% below 30-day average volume.

Looking at average position size over the past 30 days, we’re seeing average bitcoin position size at $7,586 and average position size for ether at $2,495.

Volatility has cooled off in recent sessions after an impressive surge. We’re looking at average daily ranges in bitcoin and ether of $4,075 and $170 respectively.

We have seen little in the way of meaningful price action across crypto over the past 24 hours.

Dips have attracted limited follow-through, while rallies continue to be capped by cautious and tentative positioning.

From a macro perspective, traditional markets have been characterized by a defensive tone amid ongoing uncertainty around global growth and the trajectory of monetary policy.

Wednesday’s renewed demand for the US dollar and mild risk-off flows, following a stronger-than-expected US jobs report, added modest downside pressure to crypto assets.

More broadly, sticky inflation dynamics and mixed economic data have kept investors focused on liquidity conditions rather than the timing of outright rate cuts, reinforcing a more cautious stance across risk assets.

In this environment, bitcoin continues to trade as a high-beta proxy for global liquidity, reacting more to shifts in financial conditions than to crypto-specific narratives.

Within the crypto market, flows remain subdued, with little evidence of fresh directional conviction from either institutional or retail participants.

Derivatives positioning suggests traders are comfortable maintaining largely neutral exposure, with volatility expectations remaining compressed.

Ethereum, in particular, has seen limited catalyst-driven demand, as attention around ecosystem upgrades and spot ETF speculation has faded into the background.

Geopolitically, lingering tensions across key regions and uneven regulatory messaging continue to contribute to an underlying sense of uncertainty.

While no single headline has driven markets over the past day, the accumulation of political risk and policy divergence globally has reinforced a preference for capital preservation, weighing on longer-duration and higher-risk assets, including crypto.

Looking ahead, both bitcoin and ETH are likely to remain range-bound in the near term unless disrupted by a clear macro catalyst or a material shift in liquidity conditions.

Markets remain highly sensitive to signals from central banks and fiscal authorities, suggesting traditional macro drivers will continue to dominate crypto price action.

Until conviction returns, and absent a fresh crypto-specific catalyst, consolidation remains the most probable outcome.

As a final note, it is worth highlighting that the crypto fear and greed index continues to register extreme fear levels, which historically have more often than not served as a useful warning signal that a major low may be forming.

From a price action perspective, we would need to see a sustained break back above $72,250 in bitcoin and $2,150 in ETH at a minimum to suggest that more durable bottoming dynamics are beginning to take shape.