CoinDesk
Crypto's largest tokens were close to unchanged on Thursday as the semiconductor selloff that has driven markets for two weeks showed its first real sign of easing. Ether traded at about $1,905 and bitcoin at $64,100, both flat on the day, with XRP at $1.07, solana at $74, BNB at $572 and TRON at 33 cents; Hyperliquid's HYPE slipped to $54 on roughly $28 billion of bitcoin volume and $10 billion of ether volume.
The catalyst was Asia's chip trade. Electronics giant Samsung said chip profit rose more than 250-fold on AI memory shortages, and the Kospi swung between a 6% gain and a 2% loss before settling, after a stretch that took the index down more than 40% from its June peak. SK Hynix reported profit up 557% on Wednesday and still fell 17%, a reaction that underscored how high the bar has become.
Why it matters
The equity-crypto decoupling is the real story. Bitcoin tracked semiconductor stocks through most of July, rising and falling with the chip trade, yet it held through last Thursday's $797 billion drop in U.S. megacap technology, held through Korea's record two-day decline midweek, and is flat again now. U.S. earnings split overnight: Microsoft gained nearly 9% in extended trading on its fastest cloud growth in four years, while Meta fell 8% on a weak revenue forecast, and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 1% after the index entered a technical correction on Wednesday.
Market impact
The weekly picture across crypto is deeper than Thursday's calm suggests. HYPE is down 8% over seven sessions, the worst of the majors. XRP has lost 6%, solana 5%, dogecoin 4% to $0.07, and bitcoin 3%. BNB is the only major holding a weekly gain, up marginally. That softness across the alts looks more like thinning liquidity than a direct response to anything in equities, and the failure of chip-stock stress to bleed into spot crypto is itself a positioning tell heading into next week.
Frequently asked questions
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Why are bitcoin and ether flat while chip stocks sold off?
Crypto has decoupled from the chip trade for now: bitcoin held through last Thursday's $797 billion megacap tech drop and Korea's record two-day decline, with Thursday's session close to unchanged as the Kospi stabilised.
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What did Samsung report and how did the market react?
Samsung said chip profit rose more than 250-fold on AI memory shortages, and the Kospi swung between a 6% gain and a 2% loss before settling, after a stretch that took the index down more than 40% from its June peak.
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How are the major altcoins performing this week?
HYPE is down 8% over seven sessions, the worst of the majors. XRP has lost 6%, solana 5%, dogecoin 4% to $0.07, and bitcoin 3%. BNB is the only major holding a weekly gain, up marginally.
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Did U.S. tech earnings move crypto?
U.S. earnings split overnight: Microsoft gained nearly 9% in extended trading on its fastest cloud growth in four years, while Meta fell 8% on a weak revenue forecast. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 1%, but spot crypto barely reacted.
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Is the altcoin weakness a reaction to equities or low liquidity?
The piece argues it looks more like thinning liquidity than a direct response to equity stress, since bitcoin and ether held through major chip and megacap moves without selling off in step.
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