Bitcoin dropped near $96,000, its lowest level since May, after briefly breaking key support in early US trading. The move extended a multi-day decline and erased gains from earlier in the week. Bitcoin dipped to an intraday low of around $95,885, highlighting the pressure on risk assets.
Derivatives markets amplified the slide. CoinGlass data indicates more than $1.1 billion in crypto futures positions were liquidated over 24 hours, with roughly half tied to Bitcoin pairs. Forced unwinds added to selling in a thin liquidity environment.
Macro sentiment also weighed. Equities retreated and investors questioned the odds of a near-term US rate cut, a backdrop that typically curbs appetite for volatile assets. Barron’s noted a concurrent dip in the NASDAQ and renewed caution on AI-linked stocks.
Ethereum tracked lower with the market. By late morning, ETH traded near $3,200 after a sharp 24-hour decline, continuing recent underperformance versus Bitcoin. CoinDesk data showed ether down around 9% on the day as liquidity thinned.
Solana also weakened. Prices hovered near $142 during New York hours despite steady inflows into US spot Solana ETFs since their October 28 launch. SOL traded around $142–$143, while Farside Investors’ flow table recorded consecutive net inflows across BSOL and GSOL through this week.
The divergence between ETF demand and spot performance remained notable. According to CoinGecko, SOL now trades a little over 50% below its all-time high near $293, reflecting broader risk-off positioning across altcoins.
XRP fell alongside peers to roughly $2.30 even as the first US spot XRP ETF, Canary Capital’s XRPC, posted a strong start. Multiple market trackers reported about $58 million in first-day trading volume, marking the year’s most active ETF debut so far. Price data showed XRP near $2.28–$2.33 during the session.
The privacy-coin segment showed relative strength. Recent coverage highlighted outsized gains in Zcash versus the wider market over the past several weeks, with Monero also firmer. Market breadth remained weak into the afternoon.
Bitcoin stabilized near $97,000, while the global crypto market cap hovered in the mid-$3 trillion range on major trackers, reflecting a broad risk reset. Short-term direction now hinges on liquidity conditions and whether Bitcoin can reclaim former support levels.
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