Category: Crypto market

Bitcoin whipsawed during a volatile trading session amid a huge selloff that saw it drop more than 50% from its October peak.

The original cryptocurrency fell as much as 4.8 percent to a new low of $60,033 on Friday morning. After that, it recovered to $66,721, up about 5.8% for the session.

Other tokens experienced a steep decline before rising again. Solana experienced a 14 percent decline at one point, but a few hours later, those losses were completely erased.

Cryptocurrencies have been in a precarious position ever since a harsh round of liquidations in October undermined market confidence.

The selling gained momentum this week because of the winding down of leveraged bets and general market volatility. Thursday saw the biggest one-day decline in Bitcoin since November, falling more than 13%. Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX failed in 2022.

“Bitcoin volatility has doubled from last week,” said Pratik Kala, head of research at Apollo Crypto, a digital-assets hedge fund. The Bitcoin Volmex Implied Volatility Index, which is based on real-time cryptocurrency options prices and is intended to reflect the market’s expected 30-day volatility of Bitcoin, jumped to over 97 percent on Thursday from 57 percent. “

Bitcoin dropped to $70,000, continuing its sharp decline for the third consecutive day this week. BTC fell as low as $70K, losing over 5% of its value that day. It was down  5% on the day it last traded at $72,958.38. Currently, Bitcoin has fallen more than 43% from its October peak of around $126,000.

According to a Citi note sent to clients on Tuesday, analysts say $70,000 is a critical level to watch as the decline in the digital asset intensifies. Among other factors, the token’s value is decreasing due to several geopolitical and economic issues.

A selloff led by Bitcoin has wiped out nearly half a trillion dollars from the crypto market in less than a week. The total value of the entire cryptocurrency market has fallen by $468 billion since January 29, according to CoinGecko data. Tuesday saw Bitcoin reach its lowest point since U.S. President Donald Trump was re-elected in early November 2024 and a more pro-crypto administration took office.

The cryptocurrency recovered slightly on Wednesday, trading at about $76,600 at 6:50 a.m. after hitting a 15-month low of $72,877 earlier in the day in London. Bitcoin has declined roughly 40% since reaching a record high in early October, despite a pro-crypto White House and increasing institutional adoption.

The decline follows a devastating series of liquidations on October 10 that wiped out leveraged token wagers worth $19 billion, from which the larger crypto market has not yet recovered. These drops come after a turbulent week for international markets, which also posted significant fluctuations in gold and silver.

Cryptocurrencies couldn’t find support on Wednesday. Rising tensions between the US and Iran prompted investors to seek safe investments, leading to declines in both Bitcoin and US stocks. The fall in Bitcoin raises questions about its role as a “digital gold,” as it has not served as a safe haven during times of increased geopolitical uncertainty.

This week, investor Michael Burry warned that Bitcoin has not proven to be a hedge like precious metals and instead is a purely speculative asset. Over $700 million in bullish and bearish crypto bets have been liquidated in the perpetual futures market in the past day, bringing the total loss since January to over $6.67 billion, according to CoinGlass data.

Bitcoin exchange-traded funds with US listings continue to experience volatile flows, with net inflows of roughly $562 million.