Cryptocurrency stocks have fallen much more than large tech stocks: Coinbase and Circle have dropped 69% and 72% from their highs, respectively, and Bitcoin briefly fell below $60,000, intensifying pessimism

According to Cointelegraph, in the wave of declines in technology stocks, cryptocurrency-related stocks have suffered particularly severe losses, with the divergence from the broader market continuing to widen. Coinbase (COIN) and Circle (CRCL) have fallen 69% and 72% from their respective historical highs, far exceeding the 48% to 57% pullback of mainstream tech stocks like Oracle, Salesforce, Netflix, and Palantir; in contrast, the S&P 500 index has only retreated 3.5% from its recent peak.

On the fundamental side, Coinbase's first-quarter performance was significantly below Wall Street expectations, with a 21% quarter-over-quarter decline in revenue and a loss of $1.49 per share, while analysts had previously expected earnings of $0.27 per share. Bitcoin fell below $60,000 this week, down more than 54% from its October peak; Ethereum also dropped to around $1,500, down about 69% from last year's high, with market sentiment continuing to deteriorate.

21Shares has lowered its 2026 cryptocurrency market expectations in its mid-year outlook report, believing that the performance of digital asset prices is significantly lagging behind the industry's fundamentals. The institution pointed out that institutional adoption is still deepening, with stablecoins, asset tokenization, and prediction markets maintaining strong development momentum, but the four-year market cycle of Bitcoin remains the dominant force in price trends. The report also acknowledged previous misjudgments—"the cycle of Bitcoin is evolving, but has not yet broken," retracting its earlier assertion that the four-year cycle was outdated.

Analysts believe that the deep pullback in cryptocurrency stocks reflects the overall weakness of the digital asset market, the uncertainty of legislative progress in the U.S. cryptocurrency market structure, and the compounded pressure from the potential impact of AI technology on existing business models.