ChainThink report, March 19: According to CoinDesk, Bitcoin has retreated to around $70,000, Ethereum dropped to $2,160, and the overall crypto market faces downward pressure. On the macro front, two bearish factors have converged. First, the Federal Reserve held rates steady on Wednesday, maintaining the federal funds rate range at 3.50%–3.75%, pausing its easing cycle, which strengthened the U.S. dollar and weighed on risk assets broadly. Second, following Israel’s strike on Iran’s South Pars gas field, Iran launched attacks on critical energy infrastructure in the Gulf, pushing Brent crude to $114, Oman crude to $150, and European natural gas futures surged nearly 25% to above $78 per megawatt-hour on Thursday.

In derivatives, over the past 24 hours, leveraged positions across crypto platforms were liquidated for nearly $600 million, with longs accounting for the majority, indicating that overnight declines caught long positions off guard. Total open interest in the market declined by 5.6% to $106.9 billion, with Ethereum futures open interest dropping 9%. Funding rates for major coins including BTC, ETH, BNB, and SOL turned negative, signaling a resurgence in shorting demand. The Bitcoin 30-day implied volatility index BVIV rose more than 5% to 58.36%, reversing last week’s downtrend, while put skew on Deribit for both Bitcoin and Ethereum strengthened simultaneously, reflecting intensifying market concern over downside risks.