Bitcoin price continued its weekend downturn today after bulls failed to stabilise footing above the $110,000 support level, triggering a wave of liquidations across exchanges as macro uncertainty in the US kept sentiment on edge.
A significant chunk of value was wiped from crypto markets with total market capitalisation dropping roughly 3% to $3.68 trillion by late Asian trading hours.
Investors remained in a defensive stance, with the crypto fear and greed index flashing ‘Fear’ at 42, as markets tried to find a floor.
Altcoins faced the brunt of the sell-off, with most of the top 100 cryptocurrencies alongside Bitcoin trading in red by the end of the Asian session.
Why is Bitcoin price down today?
Bitcoin’s dropped to intraday lows around $107,000 after bulls failed to hold above the $110,000 mark, a decline that came as investors took profits following a short-lived rally that pushed the total market cap to $3.81 trillion earlier in the day.
That upside was driven by optimism around a renewed US-China trade agreement, which had helped lift markets from Friday’s dip to $3.72 trillion.
The pullback appears to have been exacerbated by profit-taking as traders reassessed the outlook for monetary easing in the United States.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s post-cut speech on October 29 provided little clarity on whether another rate cut would follow in December.
While the Fed did deliver a 25 basis point reduction last month, Powell made it clear that a further cut was “not a foregone conclusion,” which sent the US dollar higher and weighed on risk appetite.
Market pricing has already begun to reflect that uncertainty.
At last check, the odds of another 25bps cut in December have dropped to 67% on Polymarket and just 69.3% according to the CME FedWatch Tool, both down from previous levels.
Even Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent struck a cautious note over the weekend, warning that parts of the economy, particularly housing, may already be in recession due to the Fed’s restrictive stance.
Against this backdrop, the crypto derivatives market saw a sharp spike in liquidations.
Data from Coinglass shows that over the past 24 hours, nearly 187,000 traders were liquidated, with total losses exceeding $526 million.
Longs accounted for the bulk of that damage at roughly $458 million.
Ethereum and Bitcoin led the liquidations, with ETH posting $151 million in losses and BTC following at $107 million.
Notably, over $403 million of those liquidations occurred in the last 12 hours alone, highlighting the speed and scale of the correction.
Adding to the pressure, US spot Bitcoin ETFs continue to bleed capital.
Fairside data shows more than $1.15 billion in net outflows last week alone, with the largest redemptions coming from institutional giants like BlackRock, ARK Invest, and Fidelity.
The persistent drawdown from these funds has likely added to the broader market strain, as ETF investors retreat from Bitcoin-linked financial products.
Another factor weighing on sentiment was Bitcoin’s poor October close, with the asset finishing the month down 3.7%, its weakest showing for October since 2018.
Hopes for an “Uptober” finish were dashed, and the weak monthly close has tempered expectations for a strong year-end rally.
Will Bitcoin price go up?
According to Bitcoin’s 24-hour liquidation heatmap, price is currently trading between two key bands of liquidation interest, hovering around the $107,000 mark.
The visible cluster of long liquidations just above $110,000 suggests that bulls were heavily positioned in that zone, and the sharp rejection from that level earlier today flushed out a significant number of over-leveraged longs.
On the downside, a dense cluster of liquidations appears to be building between $104,000 and $106,000, indicating a potential area of short-term support.
If price dips into that region, it could trigger short liquidations and possibly fuel a relief bounce, especially if spot demand stabilises or macro sentiment improves.
Meanwhile, on the upside, another wall of liquidation pressure is stacked just above $110,000 and extends to around $112,000.
These levels represent a major hurdle for any short-term recovery, as price would need to push through a thick zone of resistance where fresh shorts may begin to pile in.
For now, Bitcoin needs to hold above the $106,000 area to avoid another cascade of liquidations that could drag it closer to the $103,000 range, where the next visible cluster of leveraged long interest lies.
However, on the flip side, if price fails to find support soon and dips into that band, it risks triggering another round of stop-losses and margin calls that could deepen the correction.
Much will also depend on upcoming macroeconomic data, particularly the US jobs report due later this week.
A weak reading could revive hopes of further rate cuts, while a strong report may support the dollar and continue to pressure crypto markets.
Until then, Bitcoin remains vulnerable to further volatility as traders reposition and sentiment remains fragile.
Trader and analyst Mark Cullen warned that liquidity resting lower down the chart “could prove too tempting,” hinting that Bitcoin may not be done testing support zones.
That caution was echoed by trader CrypNuevo, who noted that “this could be one of the most difficult trading weeks of Q4,” citing the potential for a choppy and uncertain environment.
“That makes me think we might be in a range-bound environment; therefore, I should be aware of a potential range lows retest,” he added.
Adding to the bearish tone, some analysts are beginning to question whether the bull market itself may be fading.
According to market analyst CryptoBullet, Bitcoin’s recent price action closely mirrors the pattern seen at the 2021 bull market top.
Bitcoin needs to hold above the $106,000 level, according to fellow market analyst Yimin X, who based his outlook on Elliott Wave projections and key Fibonacci retracement zones.
“If this support holds, the setup remains constructive for the next impulsive leg higher,” the analyst wrote.
However, a decisive break below this zone could signal a deeper correction, invalidating the current structure and potentially opening the door to lower Fibonacci extensions around $103,000 or even $100,000.
At press time, Bitcoin had already broken below the key $106,000 support zone and was trading around $105,880, down nearly 4% over the past 24 hours.
As such, the risk of further downside has increased, with price now drifting closer to the next high-volume node near $103,000, a level that also aligns with the 0.9 and 1.0 Fibonacci extension levels from wave (i) in Yimin X’s Elliott Wave framework.
Top altcoin gainers of the day
Over the past 24 hours, the combined market capitalisation of all altcoins climbed from $1.59 trillion to an intraday peak of $1.62 trillion, before pulling back to around $1.54 trillion, down 3.1% over the day at press time.
Despite the brief surge, overall sentiment across the altcoin landscape remains cautious.
This is reflected in the Altcoin Season Index, which gauges how the top 100 altcoins are performing relative to Bitcoin.
At the time of writing, the index stood at just 27 and has failed to break above the 40 mark since mid-October, a clear signal that altcoins continue to lag behind the broader crypto market recovery.
Ethereum (ETH), the largest altcoin by market cap, initially tested the $3,900 psychological resistance but faced rejection at it as bears dragged it down to $3,700, down 3.7% over the day.
Other large-cap altcoins such as XRP (XRP), BNB (BNB), Solana (SOL), and Dogecoin (DOGE) recorded losses ranging between 3-6% respectively.
Only three of the top 99 leading altcoins managed to stay in the green amid a widespread market downturn.
MemeCore (MEME) led the resilience pack with a modest 2.24% gain, while Official Trump (TRUMP) followed with a 1.1% uptick.
Zcash (ZEC) also held firm, closing the day with nearly a 1% increase, a rare show of footing in an otherwise red-drenched market.
Source: CoinMarketCap
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