11/18 update below. This post was originally published on November 17
Bitcoin has dropped toward $90,000 per bitcoin, accelerating a sharp decline from its October all-time high of $126,000 as Federal Reserve uncertainty fuels bitcoin price crash fears.
Sign up now for CryptoCodex—A free crypto newsletter that will get you ahead of the market
The bitcoin price has fallen almost 30% from its peak last month, plunging bitcoin into bear market territory and wiping $1 trillion from the combined $3.2 trillion crypto market, with traders panicking over a bitcoin crash nightmare scenario that could be suddenly coming true.
Now, as a surprise stock market warning light quietly flashes red, analysts are warning the crypto market could be about to lose another $1 trillion.
Sign up now for the free CryptoCodex—A daily five-minute newsletter for traders, investors and the crypto-curious that will get you up to date and keep you ahead of the bitcoin and crypto market bull run
Bitcoin and crypto traders are panicking that a sudden bitcoin price sell-off could spiral into a full blown crash.
Getty Images
“The crypto market capitalisation has fallen by more than 6% over the last day to $3.26 trillion, its lowest level since early July,” Alex Kuptsikevich, FxPro chief market analyst, said in emailed comments.
“The crypto market has set lower local lows, confirming the downward trend. Since its peak on October 7, the crypto market capitalisation has fallen by more than $1 trillion, or 24%, which technically means the beginning of a bear market. If the rules of stocks apply here, then we should prepare for a further decline of approximately 20%, or around $1 trillion.”
11/18 update: The bitcoin price rout has sent bitcoin spiraling under $90,000 per bitcoin, with fears growing the crypto market is heading lower before it recovers.
“Bitcoin could absolutely drop to $80,000 to $85,000 during this period of weakness,” closely-watched trader Arthur Hayes, a founder of the BitMex crypto exchange, wrote in his latest blog post.
Hayes, blaming bitcoin’s slump on a liquidity crunch engineered by the U.S. Federal Reserve and Treasury, said bitcoin could surge back to over $200,000 before the end of the year if dollar liquidity conditions change, branding bitcoin “the free-market weathervane of global fiat liquidity.”
The bitcoin price plummet under $90,000 has been dismissed by many in the crypto space as a temporary blip rather than a long term step change, with the bitcoin price slump seen as merely contagion from stock markets.
“The recent bitcoin price movement is less about bitcoin itself and more about the wider markets,” Danny Scott, the chief executive of crypto exchange CoinCorner, said in emailed comments.
“A number of traditional financial market worries have been at play—tech sell-offs, concerns around AI, and the Fed’s increasingly bearish stance on a rate cut at the next meeting. From within the bitcoin industry, however, nothing has changed. The fundamentals continue to grow from strength to strength,” Scott said, pointing to the recent roll out by payments company Block of its support for bitcoin for its Square customers as evidence of bitcoin’s improving backdrop.
Bitcoin has now erased its year-to-date gains, with the latest drop under $100,000 leaving traders feeling increasingly uncertain.
Sign up now for CryptoCodex—A free crypto newsletter that will get you ahead of the market
The bitcoin price has moved sharply lower, with bitcoin’s sudden decline raising fears of a looming bitcoin crash.
Forbes Digital Assets
“Once the price fell below the crucial $100,000 level, it confirmed a descending channel that had been forming since mid-October, right after the massive liquidations,” Arthur Azizov, founder of B2 Ventures, said via email.
“I pay close attention to the $89,000–$94,000 zone as this is where liquidity is concentrated right now. If sellers keep putting pressure, the worst-case scenario is a return to the April 2025 $72,000–$74,000 band, where a real bullish impulse began and let bitcoin rise almost to $127,000, setting a new all-time high.”
Like many in the bitcoin and crypto space, Azizov remains upbeat over the long-term but is being worn down by the declining market.
“Looking ahead into the year-end and the beginning of 2026, I still see what’s happening now as a healthy consolidation until a clear bearish signal appears,” Azizov said. “Even though the chances for recovery are decreasing daily, they still exist.”
