JPMorgan says crypto native investors likely behind recent market correction

The severe correction in crypto markets last week, which involved massive liquidations, was likely driven by crypto native investors rather than institutional or retail ETF holders, according to JPMorgan analysts.

The analysts, led by managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, said in a Thursday report that there was "little evidence" of significant liquidation in spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds, which are generally favored by traditional retail investors.

Between Oct. 10 and Oct. 14, bitcoin ETFs saw modest cumulative outflows of $220 million, or 0.14% of total assets under management, while Ethereum ETFs recorded a larger $370 million outflow, or 1.23% of AUM, the analysts noted.

Similarly, CME bitcoin futures — a key gauge of institutional positioning — showed few liquidations, while CME Ethereum futures saw heavier deleveraging, likely reflecting "greater de-risking" by momentum traders such as commodity trading advisors and quant funds, according to the analysts.

By contrast, perpetual futures, a product typically favored by crypto native traders, both retail and institutional, experienced sharp deleveraging. Open interest in bitcoin and Ethereum perpetual contracts fell by about 40% in dollar terms — a decline exceeding the price drops of both assets. That pattern, the analysts said, indicates that crypto native investors were the primary drivers of last week’s correction, while non-crypto native investors (who are more likely to use CME futures or crypto ETFs) remained largely on the sidelines.

Crypto markets were hit by the largest liquidation event in history last Friday, triggered in part by the latest round of tariff headlines from U.S. President Donald Trump. More than $20 billion in leveraged positions were wiped out, affecting over 1.5 million traders. Bitcoin, ether, and altcoins all saw steep declines. While prices have since stabilized somewhat, sentiment remains cautious.

Bitcoin is currently trading around $108,500, down about 2.5% in the past 24 hours, according to The Block’s bitcoin price page.