Dogecoin Drops 3% While Bitcoin Holds Near $85K Amid U.S. Recession Concerns

Key Highlights:

• Dogecoin declined by 3%, while Bitcoin and Ether held steady as easing tariff concerns clashed with growing fears of a potential U.S. recession.

• Leading financial analysts are cautioning about a possible recession hitting the U.S. by 2025, with prediction markets assigning a 40% to 60% probability.

• Mantra’s OM token rebounded with a 20% gain following a sharp sell-off, and VeThor’s VTHO jumped 37% after UFC CEO Dana White came on board as a strategic advisor.

Dogecoin (DOGE) dropped 3%, while bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) held steady over the past 24 hours. Traders appeared less concerned about tariffs, but recession fears in the U.S. continued to grow, reflected in rising activity on prediction markets.

“Prominent financial voices are now warning that a U.S. recession could be imminent, with betting markets assigning a 40% to 60% chance of it occurring in 2025,” said Augustine Fan, head of insights at SignalPlus, in a Telegram message. “In our view, it may not matter much—since sentiment often shapes reality more than the other way around.”

“As a result, crypto has seen some gains during the recent market turbulence, with equities showing more volatility than Bitcoin during the broader risk-off shift,” Fan added. “Tariff-driven beggar-thy-neighbor policies have pushed spot gold to all-time highs, while BTC is beginning to reclaim its long-standing narrative as a ‘store of value.’”

Major cryptocurrencies tracked by a broad market index slipped nearly 2%, with Dogecoin (DOGE) leading the decline. Solana (SOL), Tron (TRX), and Cardano (ADA) each fell by as much as 2.5%, while BNB Chain’s BNB and XRP saw minimal movement. Meanwhile, Bitcoin remained steady around the $85,000 mark.

Mantra’s OM token rebounded 20% over the past 24 hours, trading at $0.63 during Tuesday’s Asian session. This followed a dramatic sell-off on Sunday, where it briefly lost 90% of its value in under an hour. The project’s CEO mentioned a recovery plan is underway, though some market observers remain skeptical.

Elsewhere, Story Protocol’s IP token tumbled 20% before surging over 30% within hours late Monday, triggering concerns among some investors of a repeat of OM’s flash crash.

VeThor (VTHO) spiked 37% after UFC CEO Dana White was announced as a strategic advisor to the project — a move that renewed optimism around the token’s real-world asset (RWA) focus and potential for mainstream exposure.

Singapore-based QCP Capital noted in a Telegram update that Bitcoin’s options market remains cautious, with risk reversals favoring puts through June.

“Still, sentiment appears to be improving further out,” QCP added. “Over the weekend, we saw heavy buying of long-dated call options — specifically 800 contracts for the BTC-27MAR26-100K-C. Bitcoin is still consolidating between the $80K and $90K range, possibly maintaining a 'wait and see' stance as the tariff situation evolves.”

The $100,000 Bitcoin call option has emerged as the most popular mid-term bet among traders, now holding a notional open interest close to $1.2 billion.

Some market participants believe the worst of the tariff-driven sell-offs may already be over and are optimistic about a more positive shift in sentiment going forward.

“The recent upward momentum has been reinforced by the Federal Reserve’s commitment to step in and stabilize the markets if a crisis arises due to tariff tensions,” said Jupiter Zheng, partner at HashKey Capital's liquid fund and research division, in a statement.

“With the U.S. currently engaged in trade talks with other nations, we’re hopeful that the most volatile phase is now behind us,” Zheng added.