Why does Bitcoin often decline around 18:00 Moscow time

Bitcoin almost every day declines at the same time—when the US market opens, trading activity and volume sharply increase.
The decline resembles the operations of large high-frequency traders, who profit by pushing the price down and then buying at a lower price.
Jane Street is frequently mentioned in discussions due to its large holdings in Bitcoin ETFs and resources to execute such operations, although there is no direct evidence of its involvement.
In recent weeks, many have noticed a strange pattern: Bitcoin often begins to decline when the US market opens—around 10:00 AM New York time (≈ 18:00 Moscow time ). Sometimes it is particularly pronounced: hours of gains vanish within just 15–20 minutes.
This has also occurred during a recent trading session: Bitcoin lost 16 hours of gains within just a few minutes after US trading started. BeInCrypto's editorial team understands that this is linked to Bitcoin's "morning blackout."
Bitcoin almost every day declines at the same time—when the US market opens, trading activity and volume sharply increase.
The decline resembles the operations of large high-frequency traders, who profit by pushing the price down and then buying at a lower price.
Jane Street is frequently mentioned in discussions due to its large holdings in Bitcoin ETFs and resources to execute such operations, although there is no direct evidence of its involvement.
Why Bitcoin declines at the same time
When the US market opens, there is a surge of trading—participants start actively buying and selling assets. Liquidity sharply increases, and prices become more sensitive to large-scale operations. During these moments, large traders can execute massive trades with almost no delay.
If a large participant dumps a significant amount of Bitcoin onto the market, the price will drop instantly. Then, as activity decreases, the market gradually rebounds some of the decline.
What’s the connection with Jane Street?
In the crypto community, the morning synchronized decline is thought to resemble the operations of high-frequency trading firms. These companies use algorithms capable of executing a large number of trades within seconds, profiting from tiny price fluctuations.
One of the most discussed companies is Jane Street. In terms of scale, it is one of the largest traders globally. The algorithms they use operate at high speed, with large trading volumes. With these capabilities, large participants can influence asset prices over short periods, especially during the first few minutes of trading when a large number of trades occur.
There is currently no direct evidence linking Jane Street to Bitcoin’s decline. However, it is often mentioned because, according to public data, it holds about $2.5 billion in BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin ETF. This indicates the company has resources to execute large-scale operations.
How to profit from it
Understanding its mechanism only requires imagining a possible algorithm:
At 10:00 AM New York time—when activity is at its peak—a large amount of Bitcoin is sold.
The price drops instantly because the market cannot process such a volume of trades in time.
Subsequently, the same participant can buy Bitcoin at a lower price.
Profit comes from the difference between the selling price and the subsequent buying price.
This cycle repeats daily.
This method allows for profit from short-term sharp fluctuations, without aiming to crush the market long-term.