Market Downturn and Investor Sentiment
In this week’s crypto news, the big question is why is crypto crashing? Even as the tech-heavy Nasdaq recovered from Thursday’s pullback, traders in digital assets were in no rush to add risk. Bitcoin slipped 2.1% to $84,535.40 in the 24 hours leading up to 4 p.m. It’s now down 10.3% for the week — its weakest stretch since late February, when it dropped 11.4%. In total, nearly half a trillion dollars has been wiped from the crypto market in recent weeks. At the time of writing, the total crypto market cap sits at $2.83 trillion, down from $3.25 trillion last Saturday.
Macro strategist Raoul Pal said the latest crypto slide feels eerily similar to one of 2021’s nastiest drawdowns. Back then, the market unraveled fast when Bitcoin sank 56%, Ethereum lost 62%, and Solana tumbled 68% in just four weeks. Yet that same stretch ended with a violent snapback that sent all three to new highs. Pal sees echoes of that pattern in today’s move.
ETF Outflows and Heavy Liquidations
The wave of withdrawals from crypto ETFs has become one of the main drivers of the market’s latest slide. Retail investors are behind much of the panic, pulling more than $3 billion from crypto-focused funds in just a few weeks. Bitcoin dropped to $85,000 while Ether attempted to stabilize before slipping under the $3,000 level and is trading around $2,728. Most major altcoins—like XRP, Solana, and Cardano—are still struggling too. They haven’t reclaimed key support zones, and sentiment across the market remains pretty negative.
The overall tech stock market also bled, intensifying fears of a growing bubble around the AI frenzy. Investors briefly cheered Nvidia’s strong earnings and upbeat outlook on Wednesday, but the optimism faded almost as quickly as it appeared. Even after the world’s largest public company reassured Wall Street that demand for its datacenter chips remains strong, the momentum didn’t hold. By afternoon, the same tech names driving the AI boom were sliding again, reviving concerns that the sector may be overheating far faster than it can sustain.
Historical Parallels and Potential Rebound
Investor Raoul Pal noted that the sharp crypto market declines aren’t new and have appeared in every major crypto cycle, often right before strong recoveries. Pal pointed back to 2021, when Bitcoin sank 56%, Ethereum dropped 62%, and Solana tumbled 68% in just a few weeks. Yet all three snapped back to new all-time highs, higher than many expected. He also brought up the 2019–2020 cycle. That stretch included a brutal 72% drawdown—made even worse by the Covid crash—but the market still managed to claw its way back and fully recover. Altcoins consistently took the heavier hits in each of these episodes, showing how their volatility amplifies every swing.
Bitcoin’s history shows that sharp corrections are nothing new. Back in 2016 and 2017, the market saw seven separate pullbacks of more than 30%. Those swings remind investors that deep drawdowns and fast bouts of de-risking have always been part of how this market behaves. As such, this week’s bout of bearish crypto news might not be anything new to experienced investors and traders.
Factors Influencing Future Market Movements
Meanwhile, there’s still some optimism in the market, mainly because many investors expect the Federal Reserve to cut rates in December. Recent U.S. job numbers were strong, and that has strengthened hopes that borrowing costs could start coming down. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, there’s a 71% chance of a December rate cut. Analysts say lower rates would likely help Bitcoin and the broader crypto market because cheaper borrowing usually boosts confidence in risk-on assets.