Crypto pulls out of free fall as government shutdown ends

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Crypto pulls out of free fall as government shutdown ends

An unrelenting plunge in crypto prices on Tuesday has paused after the U.S. House very narrowly passed a funding package that will now head to the president's desk for signature.

By Stephen Alpher, Nikhilesh De|Edited by Stephen Alpher

Updated Feb 3, 2026, 7:38 p.m. Published Feb 3, 2026, 7:28 p.m.

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Crypto pulls out of plunge (Gabriel Valdez/Unsplash)

The House of Representatives very narrowly passed a funding package on Tuesday with a 217-214 vote, meaning the government will reopen from its partial shutdown as soon as President Donald Trump signs the bills. Lawmakers will negotiate further funding for the Department of Homeland Security over the next week and a half, but other major departments will be funded.

The news — for the moment, at least — has halted a panic-stricken plunge in crypto prices on Tuesday, which saw bitcoin BTC$74,837.16 fall to as low as $72,800, its weakest level since before Trump's election victory in November 2024.

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At $74,800, bitcoin is still down 4.5% over the past 24 hours. Ether ETH$2,325.24 at $2,181 is down 7% over that same time frame and 26% over the past week. Other majors like XRP XRP$1.6274 and solana SOL$104.79 are seeing similar declines.

U.S. stocks have bounced from their worst levels of the day as well, but remain sharply lower, with the Nasdaq now down 2% and S&P 500 1.3%.

Read more: Bitcoin nears weekend low of $74,600 as stock selloff adds to crypto's woes

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