Fear and Greed Index: Crypto Market Sentiment Crashes, Entering Deep Fear Territory

Jakarta, Pintu News – The Crypto Fear and Greed Index fell to 24 on January 21, 2026, signaling a return of market sentiment to the extreme fear zone after briefly entering greed territory last week.

Market sentiment deteriorated drastically as crypto assets came under immense pressure again, amid rising global geopolitical tensions.

Crypto Market Sentiment Plummets into Extreme Fear Zone

Reporting from BeInCrypto, President Trump’s tariff threats against the European Union triggered a massive sell-off in global markets, which had a significant impact on risky assets. The pressure intensified on Tuesday.

Read also: Why the Crypto Market Is Down Today – January 21, 2026

In his speech at Davos, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reiterated that the Trump administration is ready to use tariffs as a key tool in geopolitical policy, further rattling global markets.

At the time of writing, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) fell below the $90,000 level, even touching below $88,000. Ethereum (ETH) also dropped to below $3,000. This massive sell-off erased more than $120 billion from the total crypto market capitalization in just the last 24 hours.

The derivatives market is reflecting the level of stress, with mass forced liquidations taking place. More than 182,000 traders were liquidated in the past day, with the total value of liquidations reaching $1.08 billion. Long positions accounted for about $989.9 million of the total losses.

This sharp sell-off also hit investor sentiment. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index dropped to 24 today. This marks the market’s return to the extreme fear zone, after last week’s greed zone of 61 on January 15.

“Risk-off sentiment is back. Capital is starting to move into safer assets,” wrote one market watcher.

The index provides a comprehensive overview of the psychology of the crypto market, incorporating factors such as volatility, market volume and momentum, social media activity, Bitcoin dominance, and Google search trends.

Analysts Respond to Weakening Confidence in Crypto Market

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), an analyst named Rex stated that investor interest in the crypto sector has plummeted to a level of widespread apathy.

Read also: 3 Reasons Why January is a Crucial Consolidation Phase for Bitcoin!

The current market mood is considered more worrisome because it is not only caused by falling prices, but also by a growing disillusionment with the long-term narrative of the crypto industry.

Rex notes that even long-time players in the crypto space are shifting their focus to the stock and commodity markets. This suggests a deeper drop in confidence, rather than just a temporary lull.

“Nobody wants to invest as an angel investor in this sector, nobody believes in bullshit narratives anymore… No one cares anymore. Literally, the sentiment couldn’t be worse than it is now. During the COVID crash, people still believed in the industry – it’s worse now,” he wrote.

However, there are still investors who remain optimistic about a potential recovery. Another analyst, Doc, said that the sentiment at Bitcoin’s true bottom is likely to be worse than the time after the FTX collapse, although the current drop is not as deep as in 2022.

This belief is based on the view that crypto is still a strong asymmetric investment, where the potential for long-term gains far outweighs the risk of losses, despite the current market pessimism.

“I’m not the type to make predictions, but if I had to pick one-the sentiment at the bottom of the BTC price will be worse than after FTX, although Bitcoin’s decline this time is not as deep as in 2022, and crypto will once again be the best asymmetric bet in the capital market. That’s why I’m staying the course,” he said.

Looking ahead, market direction is likely to be heavily dependent on the development of macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions in the weeks ahead. Until there is clarity, volatility is expected to remain high and sentiment remains fragile.

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*Disclaimer

This content aims to enrich readers’ information. Pintu collects this information from various relevant sources and is not influenced by outside parties. Note that an asset’s past performance does not determine its projected future performance. Crypto trading activities are subject to high risk and volatility, always do your own research and use cold hard cash before investing. All activities of buying and selling Bitcoin and other crypto asset investments are the responsibility of the reader.

Reference:

• BeInCrypto. Extreme Fear Replaces Greed in Crypto Market After $120 Billion Drawdown. Accessed on January 21, 2026