ETH/BTC Death Cross at 2026's Start Went Unnoticed, What's Happening Now?

Cover image via U.Today Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available. Read U.TODAY on Google News ETH/BTC death cross completed ETH price action Advertisement Galaxy Head of Research Alex Thorn draws attention to an Ethereum/Bitcoin signal, which went unnoticed on the market, possibly due to the optimism with which cryptocurrencies began the year 2026. Thorn highlighted a death cross on the ETH/BTC daily chart, adding that this mostly went unnoticed. Digital assets had seen a seemingly promising start to the year, after ending 2025 in a malaise. Ethereum itself rose past $3,000, while Bitcoin rose near $98,000; several altcoins also saw significant gains. However, this reversed, with several cryptocurrencies trading in red at press time and a handful of altcoins nursing sharper weekly losses. HOT Stories Breaking: Strategy Now Owns 700,000 BTC Morning Crypto Report: $74.68 Million XRP Bull Makes Brutal Mistake, Bitcoin Briefly Hits $0 On Decentralized Exchange, Shiba Inu (SHIB) Delivers 5,407,865% Liquidation Shock: What Happened? Ripple CEO to Go Live in Davos U.Today Crypto Review: XRP's Biggest Price Bounce, Shiba Inu (SHIB) Still Fighting, Is Ethereum (ETH) Eyeing Third $3,500 Breakout? ETH/BTC death cross completed Alex Thorn, Galaxy's Head of Research, noted that the ETH/BTC death cross at the start of 2026 went unnoticed. Advertisement this mostly went unnoticed afaict but ETHBTC started the year with a death cross pic.twitter.com/p6jNJzcgPF — Alex Thorn (@intangiblecoins) January 20, 2026 On a chart shared by Thorn, the 50-day MA for the ETH/BTC daily chart has dropped beneath the 200 day MA, completing a death cross. This signal, interpreted as a bearish one, has implications for the altcoin market, as it might lead to the prolonged underperformance of Ethereum and other altcoins relative to Bitcoin. Advertisement Altcoin outperformance has often coincided with a rising ETH/BTC ratio. This is because traders are willing to take more risk when Ethereum is outperforming Bitcoin and vice versa. ETH price action Ethereum is recording higher percentage losses than Bitcoin in the last 24 hours, even as the ongoing market sell-off intensifies. At press time, ETH was down 6.46% in the last 24 hours to $3,104, while Bitcoin was down 3.12% in this time frame to $89,991. In this light, Ethereum surpassed Bitcoin in 24-hour liquidation in Tuesday's session, even as the crypto market saw $573 million in total liquidations. Ethereum accounted for $240 million of this figure, overtaking Bitcoin, which saw $180 million in 24-hour liquidations. #Ethereum #Bitcoin