One year after 10/10 flash crash, bitcoin and ether liquidity have rebuilt, but altcoins still face risks
Reported by CoinDesk · AI-assisted summary by ChikoCorp AI News Desk
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Summary
One year after the October 10, 2025 flash crash, Bitcoin and Ether order books have rebuilt and now show deeper liquidity than on the crash day and earlier in 2025 and 2026. This reflects increased capital from market makers rather than just lower coin prices. In contrast, altcoin liquidity has steadily declined since early 2025, with dollar depth falling despite token price decreases. Overall spot trading volume remains significantly lower than during the crash week.
Why it matters
The source highlights that capital and liquidity have largely rotated back into the major cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ether, indicating renewed market maker interest and stability for these tokens. However, altcoins face continuing liquidity risks. This liquidity divergence could shape trading dynamics and market structure, though the source does not explicitly discuss broader market or policy implications.
Key context
The October 10, 2025 crash was the largest liquidation event in crypto history, triggered partly by U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports, which sparked rapid price drops and over $19 billion in liquidated leveraged positions. CoinDesk Research compared market depth—the value of resting buy and sell orders—across four benchmark dates from early 2025 through October 2026 to assess recovery. Depth measures how much volume a large trade can absorb without moving prices significantly.
Key numbers and entities
Bitcoin order book depth within 1% of price reached about $11.7 million on October 7, 2026, 75% higher than the roughly $6.9 million on crash day. Ether's depth within 0.5% of price more than doubled to about $4.2 million. Altcoin depth at 5% from price dropped about one-third to $2 million since early 2025. Weekly centralized exchange spot volume was $279 billion as of late September 2026, down nearly two-thirds from $801 billion during the crash week. Joshua de Vos of CoinDesk Research and Saksham Diwan, a CoinDesk Researcher, are quoted.
What remains unclear
The source does not explain specific factors driving altcoins’ liquidity decline versus majors or the roles of individual altcoins. It also does not detail how these liquidity trends affect retail investors or decentralized exchanges. Potential regulatory or macroeconomic influences on evolving liquidity are not addressed.