OVERVIEW
Crypto Data Dive - Week 3
Welcome to the Crypto Data Dive for Week 3 of 2026!
In this issue, we'll dive into the data to keep you informed about the progress of the overall crypto market and shine a spotlight on emerging and established trends.
What You’ll Find In The Stocktwits Crypto Data Dive has three main objectives:
Total and Altcoin caps, stamped with YTD moves and the gap to ATH.
Seven-layer market-cap recap (TMC ex-stables, ex-top-50, and five more flavors).
Crypto Index Performance covering 12 indices.
The Liquidation Station boards the train with 30-day totals plus a 7-day heatmap for maximum schadenfreude.
Market Heatmap, Social Volume Heatmap, Active Address Heatmap.
ETF scorecards for BTC and ETH still tracking 7- and 30-day flows.
So, without further delay, let's jump right into the data from week 3 and explore its intriguing insights!
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Crypto Market Cap Update
What is the broader trend within the crypto market? The simplest way to track this is by using three market cap charts. So let's see what we got.
*the price levels and performance values may be very different from what you read in your mailbox vs. what's happening in the live market. This is especially true when crypto faces a new bull or bear run.
Total Market Cap
All-Time High Close: $4.22 trillion
Click to enlarge.
Altcoin Market Cap
All-Time High: $1.73 trillion
Click to enlarge.
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Crypto Index RRG
Relative Rotation Graphs (RRG) help us visualize how a currency or sector performs compared to a benchmark - in this case, the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY). Think of the four colored sectors as stages in a race:
Leading Quadrant (green) - You're a champ! You're ahead of everyone else, and the crowd is cheering. But watch out; you might be overdoing it.
Weakening Quadrant (yellow) - You're slowing down and losing your lead. Maybe you're a bit demoralized because your biggest fan didn't show up. You're now in the middle of the pack.
Lagging Quadrant (red) - Disaster strikes! You're injured, exhausted, or just made a big mistake. You're now in last place, and it's a sad scene.
Improving Quadrant (blue) - Time for a comeback! Your motivation returns, the music swells, and you're picking up speed. You're back in the middle, catching up with the leaders.
Analyzing the RRG Examples
Example 1: Rapid Rotation
- If an instrument moves quickly through all four quadrants, it could indicate high volatility or erratic behavior. Traders may want to be cautious or use appropriate risk management strategies in such cases.
Example 2: Stuck in the Middle
- An instrument that remains close to the center of the RRG might be in a consolidation phase, lacking a clear trend or momentum. Traders might wait for a decisive move before entering a position.
Example 3: Consistent Leader
- If an instrument stays in the Leading Quadrant (top right) for an extended period, it could signify a strong, sustained uptrend. Traders might consider buying opportunities or riding the trend.
Example 4: Slow Recovery
- An instrument that gradually moves from the Lagging Quadrant (bottom left) to the Improving Quadrant (blue) and eventually to the Leading Quadrant (green) could indicate a slow but steady recovery. Traders might look for potential reversal or bottom-fishing opportunities.
The GIF below shows the past 21 days of movement on the RRG.
Click to enlarge.
The GIF below shows the past 13 weeks of movement on the RRG.
Click to enlarge.
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Total Market Cap (TMC) Performance For 2025
Index | Value | Weekly Performance |
|---|---|---|
TMC Excluding BTC and ETH | $894B | +1% |
TMC Excluding BTC and Stablecoins | $1T | +4% |
TMC Excluding BTC, ETH, and Stablecoins | $606B | +1% |
TMC Excluding Stablecoins | $2.91T | +5% |
TMC Excluding Top 10 | $220B | +2% |
TMC Excluding Top 50 | $53B | +3% |
TMC Excluding Top 100 | $10B | +2% |
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Crypto Index Performance For 2025
Index | Weekly Performance |
|---|---|
AI | +4% |
Decentralized Finance | +13% |
Decentralized Physical Infrastructure | +40% (not a typo) |
Exchange Tokens | +2% |
Layer 1 | +5% |
Meme | -1% |
Proof-Of-Stake | +5% |
Proof-Of-Work | +5% |
Real World Asset Tokenization | +1% |
Rehypothecated | +6% |
Smart Contracts | +6% |
Stablecoins | +1% |
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Liquidation Station
Interested in how much has been flushed out of leveraged long and short positions? Who’s getting hurt the most? This is the best place to get an idea of how leveraged positions are doing.
30-day Total Liquidations :
What You’re Looking At
Green bars above zero = longs blown out because price fell.
Red bars below zero = shorts blown out because price ripped.
Left-hand scale is U.S. dollars (millions); the dashed line near the top sits at $1B.
30-day Total Crypto Liquidation Chart - Click to enlarge.
December 9-11 - early long-side pressure, roughly $250M-$350M days as BTC slips and early dip-buyers misjudge everyone's patience.
December 14-16 - the largest long cluster of the window, brushing $400M-$500M as BTC fades again and positioning crowds in too early.
December 22-23 - two-sided activity picks up, but longs still lead, confirming churn rather than capitulation.
December 31 - January 1 - year-end to New Year rotation where shorts finally take a meaningful hit near $300M in thin liquidity.
January 4-7 - renewed long trimming in the $250M-$350M range as BTC fails to accelerate higher.
7-day Liquidation Heat Map :
What You’re Looking At
Rows = coins, columns = timestamps.
Color = head-count of forced liquidations (legend tops at 2,000).
A cell showing “BTC 1,600” means 1,600 separate BTC positions were liquidated.
7-day Cryptocurrency Liquidation Heatmap - Click to enlarge.
January 3 11:00 - BTC, ETH, and SOL light up together, the first leverage flush of the year.
January 4 03:00-19:00 - sustained majors-led heat, with XRP and DOGE joining once BTC gets moving.
January 5 11:00 - a sharp alt participation burst, especially 1000PEPE and a few mid-caps, while BTC cools briefly.
January 6 03:00 - synchronized spike across BTC, ETH, and SOL, one of the hottest columns of the week.
January 8 03:00-19:00 - another majors-first wave followed by broader alt engagement before activity fades.
Some Interesting Insights :
Across both charts, leverage behavior reset with the calendar, not with price structure.
Long liquidations stayed dominant despite relatively small daily moves, a sign of overcrowded positioning in a range.
Heat-map spikes align with failed BTC pushes rather than clean breaks, reinforcing the chop narrative.
Majors trigger the damage, but trader-count pain concentrates in smaller names once liquidity thins.
The actionable pattern remains boring and effective: when price stalls and liquidation frequency rises, the market is farming size, not rewarding direction.