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Crypto Markets Analysis: Bitcoin, Ether Continue Surge Into February, but Jobs Data Raises Questions
The Federal Reserve must weigh the U.S.’ debt obligations while trying to tame inflation without sending the economy into a deep recession. Its next steps could have an impact on crypto markets.
Updated Feb 3, 2023, 9:01 p.m. Published Feb 3, 2023, 9:01 p.m.
Bitcoin and ether finished another positive week, even as the stubbornly strong jobs market raised questions about the U.S. Federal Reserve’s next interest rate move.
The U.S. added a whopping 517,000 jobs in January, 98% higher than the prior month, and 172% higher than expectations. The unemployment rate fell to 3.4%, while the labor force participation rate rose to 3.4%.
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Investors may view the robust job market negatively as it suggests the economy is not cooling as much as other economic data indicates, and may prompt the U.S. central bank to extend its current series of rate increases. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has repeatedly said taming inflation, which topped 9% at one point in 2022, remains a priority.
Central bankers must weigh the United States’ own interest obligations, along with recessionary concerns, as they mull additional changes to monetary policy that would staunch rising prices. The United States interest payments have increased 41% since the first quarter of 2022.
The options traditionally available to governments to manage debt obligations include raising taxes, reducing spending or increasing borrowing. The combination of these factors can send markets downward.
Traditional markets have been mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) trading higher while the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq composite declined today.
Fixed income markets appear cautious because the yield on the two-year Treasury note also rose on the day.
Derivatives markets appear to be pricing in higher interest rates for the first two quarters of 2023.
Crypto markets at least momentarily appear to be shrugging off the unsettling jobs numbers because many of the top names by market capitalization posted solid weekly gains.
Bitcoin and ether finished near the middle of the pack, rising 2% and 4%, respectively, over the last seven days. ATOM and led the way, up 12.3% and 11.5%, respectively, while XMR and APT lagged the pack, down 3.9% and 4.3%.
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What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
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Coinbase Sees Crypto Recovery Ahead as Liquidity Improves and Fed Rate Cut Odds Climb
The crypto exchange also took note of a so-called AI bubble that continues to go strong and a weaker U.S. dollar.
What to know:
- Coinbase Institutional is seeing a potential December recovery in crypto, citing improving liquidity and a shift in macroeconomic conditions that could favor risk assets like bitcoin.
- The firm's optimism is driven by rising odds of Federal Reserve rate cuts, with markets pricing in a 93% chance easing next week, and improving liquidity conditions.
- Several recent institutional developments, including Vanguard's crypto ETF policy reversal and Bank of America's greenlighting of crypto allocations, have contributed to bitcoin's rebound from recent lows.
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