January 15, 2026

BTC Rally, Coinbase Rejects the Bill, and the Sui Outage: A Breakdown

The crypto market is showing its true colors again: some assets are skyrocketing on short squeezes, others are crashing due to technical failures, and major players are entering open political warfare.

This week, we saw a powerful rally in BTC and ETH, Coinbase's loud refusal to support a key bill, and a six-hour outage on the Sui network. These aren't just headlines—they are signals that the rules of the game are changing. Let's break down what's behind these events and how to protect your capital in an environment of growing uncertainty.

1. Coinbase vs. Regulators: Why a "Not Bad" Law Is Still a Problem

What happened: Coinbase publicly withdrew its support for the latest version of a Senate bill on crypto market structure.
Why it matters: When the largest US exchange and a major market maker says "no" to a regulatory document, it's not just a gesture. It's a signal to the entire market: the rules remain foggy.

  • Market Reaction: Uncertainty forces funds to delay listings and market makers to widen spreads as insurance.
  • What to expect: Expect heightened volatility around hearing and voting dates. News about amendments will sell and buy liquidity faster than you think.

Practical Takeaway: In such periods, it's wise to reduce exposure on high-margin positions. Avoid opening large market orders during overnight sessions when liquidity is thinner, and keep an eye on the news feed.

2. The BTC and ETH Rally: A Classic Short Squeeze

Bitcoin and Ethereum showed sharp upward movements, but not just on buyer enthusiasm.

  • Fuel for Growth: Inflows into spot BTC ETFs resumed, reaching hundreds of millions of dollars per session. ETFs are literally "absorbing" available supply.
  • The Spark: The derivatives market paid the price for short positions—liquidations neared the $700 million mark across the ecosystem. This is a classic short squeeze recipe: a spot supply shortage plus forced short covering drives the price higher.

Risks:

  • Liquidity Squeeze: While ETFs are buying "everything that moves," spot market liquidity tightens. For a large player, executing an order without significant price impact becomes more expensive.
  • Fakeouts: Short squeezes often lead to the market "grabbing" stop liquidity and then retracing.

Practical Takeaway: If you trade with leverage, it's time to be modest. Watch ETF flows and the funding rate: they will tell you who is driving the game. Investors should consider taking partial profits on the way up and rebalancing their portfolios.

3. The Sui Outage: When Tech Undermines Trust

The Sui blockchain halted for six hours. Transactions stopped, and the network returned to operation without a full explanation of the causes.

  • The Problem: The drama isn't the event itself, but the lack of answers. Ambiguity erodes counterparty trust and forces market makers to hold extra liquidity buffers, widening spreads.
  • Consequences: Users start moving funds to "safe havens," further hitting ecosystem liquidity.

Parallel Infrastructure Trends:

  • Privacy and ZK: The conversation around Zero-Knowledge proofs is gaining momentum. It's a compromise: regulators want traceability, users want privacy. Selective disclosure could change the composition of market participants.
  • Gas Markets: Projects are emerging that sell block space as a tradable asset (e.g., the GWEI token). This will allow institutions to hedge gas costs, making the market more predictable.

Practical Takeaway: Don't keep your liquidity reserve on one network or wallet. Reduce exposure to projects without a transparent post-mortem after incidents.

4. Miners and Capital Flows

Miners and public companies are actively rethinking their businesses.

  • Some are selling: To finance AI and High-Performance Computing (HPC) projects. This creates short-term pressure on liquidity.
  • Others are accumulating: Locking up hundreds of thousands of ETH or growing BTC reserves, reducing available supply on the market.

The Result: The supply available for immediate sale is becoming less predictable, and the price is becoming more sensitive to large institutional trades.

Conclusion: A Survival Strategy

The market is living in a restructuring mode. Regulatory noise in Washington, spot ETF inflows, and technical incidents on individual L1s together make the market less predictable and more prone to sharp moves.

What Coinrate readers should do:

  1. Reduce leverage. Before important committees and votes, this is mandatory.
  2. Follow the flows. ETFs and funding rates on derivatives show where risk is accumulating.
  3. Diversify. Don't keep "everything on one node" and don't rely on a single L1 network.
  4. Break up profit-taking plans. Volatility is your friend for partial takes, not a reason to hold everything in hopes of "even higher."

Don't panic, but don't play roulette. The market right now has enough factors that can either make your position magnificent or silently destroy your margin.

This material is for informational purposes only. Please evaluate the risks independently before investing.

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An expert-driven blog by Sergey Smotrov — a leading voice in crypto and investment, and CEO of Coinrate. Join our community — follow us on social media for exclusive updates.