For months, Bitcoin experienced systematic selling pressure at 10 AM Eastern Time, coinciding with the US stock market open. Traders noted that the pattern consistently triggered liquidations, limiting short-term rallies and creating volatility during the first hour of market activity. While institutional flows from ETFs, CME futures, and rebalancing naturally concentrate during this window, the near-daily recurrence defied purely technical explanations.
Jane Street, a global market maker managing roughly $650 billion in assets, was frequently discussed as a potential driver. Its central role in ETFs and high-frequency trading made it a plausible candidate in the eyes of market participants, although no concrete evidence had previously been presented. The repetition of the phenomenon nevertheless fueled speculation among retail and institutional traders alike, framing the 10 AM event as a “market metronome” in the crypto-sphere.
Lawsuit Shifts Market Dynamics
The dynamic shifted abruptly on February 23, 2026, when Todd Snyder, the administrator handling Terraform Labs’ liquidation, filed a lawsuit alleging that Jane Street engaged in insider trading during the Terra collapse in May 2022. The complaint detailed that a wallet formally linked to Jane Street withdrew $85 million in UST ten minutes after Terraform Labs pulled $150 million, raising questions about coordination and information asymmetry. Bryce Pratt, a former Terra employee, was reportedly employed at Jane Street at the time, maintaining ties with his ex-colleagues.
Jane Street denied wrongdoing, calling the lawsuit opportunistic, and emphasized that the actions were unrelated to the broader collapse. Legal analysts noted that the case adds complexity to market perception rather than providing definitive proof of manipulation. The timing of the suit’s filing, however, coincided with a noticeable change in market behavior that had previously followed a predictable 10 AM pattern.
Market Response and Broader Implications
Following the announcement, the 10 AM bitcoin dump did not occur. Over the subsequent two days, Bitcoin rose above $68,000, Ethereum increased 13%, and Solana gained 15%, collectively adding roughly $200 billion to the total crypto market capitalization. Analysts highlight that while the halt in the sell-off aligns with the lawsuit, inflows from US ETFs and broader institutional positioning also contributed to the gains.
The episode underscores the intersection of legal, institutional, and technical factors in crypto markets. For market participants, the cessation of the 10 AM dump illustrates how external pressures—including regulatory and legal events—can influence trading patterns. While the causality remains debated, investors now observe a market environment where prior short-term distortions appear to have eased, at least temporarily, offering insight into the evolving structure and oversight of crypto liquidity.