Crypto Fear & Greed Flashes ‘Extreme’ Longer Than Amid FTX Panic

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index has printed ‘Extreme Fear’ for 14 straight days. On December 26, it stands at 20. This means a longer stretch of deep pessimism than during the November 2022 FTX collapse, even as BTC $88 612 24h volatility: 1.3% Market cap: $1.77 T Vol. 24h: $37.54 B trades around the $88,000 level, roughly 5x its FTX-era price.

Crypto Prices Today: Why Is the Fear Extreme?

The index, maintained by Alternative.me, is built from volatility, volume, dominance, and social data. It showed fewer consecutive ‘Extreme Fear’ closes during the FTX blow‑up in November 2022. During the FTX event, Bitcoin price nuked through $20,000 to sub‑$16,000 in days, and the index briefly cratered. Liquidity evaporated, and centralized credit froze.

Today’s setup looks different. Prices are elevated, but sentiment is not. BTC sits near $88,000 (~0.0–0.5% on the day, data from BTC/USD spot across major venues). The Fear & Greed Index sits at 20, firmly in its 0–24 ‘Extreme Fear’ band.

The broader market trades sideways. Coingecko’s sector tracker shows NFT-related tokens down about 7.4% over 24h. In contrast, baskets tied to AI and SocialFi names show small positive returns in the low single digits, suggesting a rotation rather than an outright risk-on appetite.

Today, BTC trades more than five times higher than during the FTX collapse, spot ETF flows for Bitcoin and other currencies exist, and yet the same fear gauge remains pinned near the lows for two whole weeks, reflecting persistent anxiety rather than a single shock.

Macro and regulatory pressure sit in the background. U.S. rates remain restrictive by post‑2010 standards. Multiple U.S. agencies continue to exert enforcement pressure on centralized venues and stablecoin issuers. Binance still faces monitoring post-settlement, though other major cases, such as Coinbase and Ripple, were dropped.

Derivatives show similar caution. Funding on major BTC perpetuals has compressed around flat or slightly negative in recent sessions, and open interest has come off local highs, indicating reduced leverage rather than frothy long positioning. Spot volumes remain muted compared with the early‑2024 ETF launch window, even though price trades near all‑time highs.

The result is a market that looks rich on a long‑term chart yet still trades as if participants expect another rug pull.

“Extreme fear can be a sign that investors are too worried. That could be a buying opportunity,” the Fear & Greed Index methodology notes, while warning that extreme greed often signals an overheated market.

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