Apparent demand for Bitcoin (BTC) has hit the lowest level in 2025, dropping down into negative territory, as traders and investors take a cautious approach to risk-on assets due to macroeconomic uncertainty.

According to CryptoQuant’s Bitcoin Apparent Demand metric, demand for Bitcoin has dropped down to a negative 142 on March 13.

Bitcoin’s apparent demand has been positive since September 2024, peaking around December 2024 before beginning the slow descent back down.

However, demand levels stayed positive until the beginning of March 2025 and have continued to decline since that point.

Fears of a prolonged trade war, geopolitical tensions, and stubbornly high inflation, which is cooling but is nevertheless above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, are causing traders to take a step back from riskier assets and into safe havens such as cash and government securities.

Bitcoin apparent demand. Source: CryptoQuant

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Crypto markets hemorrhage amid macroeconomic uncertainty

The post-election hype has died down following the mixed reactions from investors to the White House Crypto Summit on March 7, as the realities of macroeconomic uncertainty and the political process set in.

Despite lower-than-expected CPI inflation figures reported on March 12, the price of Bitcoin declined immediately following the news.

Crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) experienced four consecutive weeks of outflows beginning in February and the early weeks of March as traditional financial investors sought a flight to safety.

According to CoinShares, outflows from crypto ETFs totaled $4.75 billion over the past four weeks, with BTC investment vehicles recording $756 million in month-to-date outflows.

Poor market sentiment and fears of a looming recession triggered a wave of panic selling that sent crypto prices tumbling.

Since the Trump inauguration on Jan. 20, the Total3 Market Cap, a measure of the total crypto market capitalization excluding Ether (ETH) and BTC, plummeted by over 27% from over $1.1 trillion to approximately $795 billion.

Bitcoin price action and analysis. Source: TradingView

Similarly, the price of Bitcoin declined by over 22% from a high of over $109,000 to present levels.

Bitcoin has been trading below its 200-day exponential moving average (EMA) since March 9, with occasional dips below the 200-day EMA during February.

Bitcoin’s Average True Range (ATR), a measure of volatility, is currently over 5,035 — indicating significant price swings as markets grapple with macro factors.

Crypto analyst Matthew Hyland recently argued that Bitcoin must secure a close of at least $89,000 on the weekly timeframe or risk a further correction to $69,000.

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This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

A previously unknown type of cryptojacking malware called MassJacker is targeting piracy users and hijacking crypto transactions by replacing stored addresses, according to a March 10 report from CyberArk.

The cryptojacking malware originates from the website pesktop[dot]com, where users seeking to download pirated software may unknowingly infect their devices with the MassJacker malware. After the malware is installed, the infection swaps out crypto addresses stored on the clipboard application for addresses controlled by the attacker.

According to CyberArk, there are 778,531 unique wallets linked to the theft. However, only 423 wallets held crypto assets at any point. The total amount of crypto that had either been stored or transferred out of the wallets amounted to $336,700 as of August. However, the company noted that the true extent of the theft could be higher or lower.

One wallet, in particular, seemed active. This wallet contained just over 600 Solana (SOL) at the time of analysis, worth approximately $87,000, and had a history of holding non-fungible tokens. These NFTs included Gorilla Reborn and Susanoo.

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A look into the wallet on Solana’s blockchain explorer Solscan shows 1,184 transactions dating back to March 11, 2022. In addition to transfers, the wallet’s owner dabbled in decentralized finance in November 2024, swapping various tokens like Jupiter (JUP), Uniswap (UNI), USDC (USDC), and Raydium (RAY).

Crypto malware targets array of devices

Crypto malware is not new. The first publicly available cryptojacking script was released by Coinhive in 2017, and since then, attackers have targeted an array of devices using different operating systems.

In February 2025, Kaspersky Labs said that it had found crypto malware in app-making kits for Android and iOS. The malware had the ability to scan images for crypto seed phrases. In October 2024, cybersecurity firm Checkmarx revealed it had discovered crypto-stealing malware in a Python Package Index, which is a platform for developers to download and share code. Other crypto malware have targeted macOS devices.

Related: Mac users warned over malware ‘Cthulhu’ that steals crypto wallets

Rather than having victims open a suspicious PDF file or download a contaminated attachment, attackers are getting sneakier. One new “injection method” involves the fake job scam, where an attacker will recruit their victim with the promise of a job. During the virtual interview, the attacker will ask the victim to “fix” microphone or camera access issues. That “fix” is what installs the malware, which can then drain the victim’s crypto wallet.

The “clipper” attack, in which malware alters cryptocurrency addresses copied to a clipboard, is less well-known than ransomware or information-stealing malware. However, it offers advantages for attackers, as it operates discreetly and often goes undetected in sandbox environments, according to CyberArk.

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The odds of a recession are rising, markets are crashing and President Donald Trump is forging ahead with tariffs.

This volatile playbook is eerily similar to Trump’s first term, which started with a bang before giving way to one of the biggest bull markets in recent history. However, this time, Trump seems to have dropped the stock market as one of his favorite barometers of success, opting instead to focus on the long-term health of the US economy. 

Trump has promised to usher in America’s next “Golden Age,” but before that happens, the economy might need a painful dose of medicine. There is growing speculation that Trump is purposely stoking growth fears and crashing the market to force the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.

It might sound crazy, but there may be a method to Trump’s apparent madness. 

A coordinated crash

For decades, there was an unspoken rule in Washington that the president must remain tight-lipped about Fed policy. However, Trump threw that convention out the window when he publicly stated that the Fed should consult the president on interest rates. 

In February, Trump took to social media to say, “Interest Rates should be lowered.” When the central bank refused to play ball, the Trump administration took matters “into their own hands [by] crashing asset prices in an attempt to force Jerome Powell to cut interest rates,” according to entrepreneur and market commentator Anthony Pompliano.

Pompliano and others say the Trump administration is intentionally crashing the stock market to bring borrowing costs down before the US government needs to refinance $7 trillion in debt over the next six months.

The plan appears to be working, with the 10-year yield plunging nearly 60 basis points from its peak earlier this year. While the Fed isn’t expected to cut interest rates at its upcoming meeting in March, the odds of a May cut are now above 50%. 

Source: Alex Kruger

Recession odds spike to 40%: JPMorgan

The crypto and stock market sell-off on March 10 was largely driven by fears that the US economy was barreling toward a recession. Those fears were echoed in the bond market, with the 10-year yield plunging to the lowest level since Trump was elected. 

Against this backdrop, analysts at JPMorgan have upped their odds of a recession this year to 40% from 30%. 

Growing recession odds crash the crypto market. Source: CoinMarketCap

“We see a material risk that the US falls into recession this year owing to extreme US policies,” the analysts said.

Goldman Sachs economists also worry that Trump’s trade war could plunge the US economy into a sharp downturn. They raised their 12-month recession odds to 20% from 15%. 

According to Goldman, the outlook could worsen if the Trump administration remains steadfast in its policies “even in the face of much worse data.”

BlackRock’s BUIDL enters DeFi

Real-world asset (RWA) tokenization company Securitize has selected RedStone to provide data feeds for its tokenized products, which include BlackRock’s USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL). With the partnership, Securitize’s funds can now be used across DeFi products, including Morpho, Compound and Spark. This could expand BUIDL’s use cases into money market exchanges and collateralized DeFi platforms.

BlackRock’s BUIDL is the world’s largest tokenized Treasury fund, reaching $500 million in assets under management in less than four months. It was launched on the Ethereum network and can be accessed through Securitize. The fund invests all of its assets in cash, US Treasury bills and repurchase agreements. 

Staking ETH?

Cboe BZX, a leading securities exchange headquartered in Chicago, is seeking approval from US regulators to add staking into Fidelity’s Ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund.

According to a March 11 filing, Cboe is proposing a rule change that would allow the Fidelity Ethereum fund to “stake, or cause to be staked, all or a portion of the Trust’s Ether through one or more trusted staking providers.”

Staking could potentially boost the appeal of Ether ETFs by giving investors access to yields. 

In February, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) acknowledged more than a dozen crypto-related ETF filings. Recognizing the SEC’s regulatory pivot since President Trump’s inauguration, Cboe is attempting to strike while the iron is hot. 

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