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6 Explanations for Crypto's Fascination With Coronavirus

Is it about self-sovereignty? About BTC as a reserve asset? Or are we just Chicken Little prophets of doom?

Updated Sep 13, 2021, 12:21 p.m. Published Feb 25, 2020, 8:00 p.m.
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We're concerned about coronavirus, but why? Is it about self-sovereignty? About BTC as a reserve asset? Or are we just Chicken Little prophets of doom?

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The spread of Coronavirus has dominated the news cycle across industries, but the discussion has been particularly fierce in both the finance and tech worlds, with crypto right in the lead.

For a month or more, prominent crypto voices have been discussing the event in terms of skepticism of reported government cases, questions of market impact and plans for personal preparation.

NLW surveyed more than 1,500 people on Crypto Twitter to ask why the crypto community was so interested in the Coronavirus.

These were the top answers:

This episode of The Breakdown also features an excerpt from Hidden Forces Ep 123: Market Nihilism: Price Discovery in a World Where Nothing Matters | Ben Hunt & Grant Williams

For more episodes and free early access before our regular 3 p.m. Eastern time releases, subscribe with Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocketcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Stitcher, RadioPublica, IHeartRadio or RSS.

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KuCoin Hits Record Market Share as 2025 Volumes Outpace Crypto Market

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KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.

What to know:

  • KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
  • This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
  • Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
  • Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
  • Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.

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Bitcoin and ether volatility trading gets easier with Polymarket's new contracts

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Polymarket has launched new prediction markets tied to Volmex's bitcoin and ether 30-day implied volatility indices.

What to know:

  • Polymarket has launched new prediction markets tied to Volmex's bitcoin and ether 30-day implied volatility indices, allowing users to bet on how high volatility will get in 2026.
  • The contracts pay out if volatility indices reach or exceed a preset level by Dec. 31, 2026, letting traders wager on the intensity of price swings rather than market direction.
  • Early trading implies roughly a one-in-three chance that bitcoin and ether volatility will nearly double from current levels.