The cryptocurrency market entered November on a shaky note as Bitcoin tumbled below the key $100,000 mark, hitting its lowest level since late June. The world’s largest digital asset has fallen more than 20 percent from its record high of over $126,000 set on October 6, raising questions over whether this decline is a temporary pullback or the beginning of a prolonged downturn.
The drop comes amid a combination of technical and macroeconomic factors that have unsettled investors. A crucial support level — the 200-day moving average at $109,800 — was breached earlier this week, triggering further selling pressure. “From a technical perspective, Bitcoin’s correction phase is likely to persist for several more weeks,” said Katie Stockton, founder of Fairlead Strategies, who expects the next key support around $94,200. She maintains a long-term price target of $134,500 once the correction stabilizes.
Macroeconomic uncertainty has added to the pressure. The US dollar’s recent strength, fueled by differing opinions among Federal Reserve officials about the timing of future rate cuts, has weighed on risk assets such as cryptocurrencies. Recent hawkish remarks from Fed policymakers have prompted investors to move toward safer assets. According to CoinShares’ head of research, James Butterfill, cryptocurrency investment products saw net outflows of $360 million last week, a sign of waning confidence.
Within the crypto ecosystem, signs of weakening institutional participation are emerging. Paul Howard, director at crypto trading firm Wincent, noted that demand from exchange-traded fund (ETF) investors and corporate treasuries has declined sharply. “That strong summer demand has been replaced by long-term wallets offloading their holdings,” he said.
On-chain data supports that observation. Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments, said institutional net buying has dropped below the daily mining supply for the first time in seven months, meaning new Bitcoin entering the market is exceeding institutional demand. Data from Glassnode also shows a sharp slowdown in accumulation, with BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF seeing weekly inflows fall to fewer than 600 Bitcoins — down from over 10,000 per week during earlier rallies.
Despite the sell-off, some analysts believe the market’s core remains solid. Singapore-based QCP Capital said the decline reflects profit-taking rather than panic, noting that around 405,000 long-held Bitcoins changed hands in the past month without a collapse below major support levels. They point out that leverage remains low and funding rates are stable, suggesting limited risk of forced liquidations.
Gary O’Shea, head of Global Market Insights at asset manager Hashdex, remains optimistic about Bitcoin’s future. “We do not view today’s price action as a sign of a weakening long-term investment case,” he said, citing ongoing institutional adoption as a driver for potential recovery.
For now, traders are watching closely to see whether Bitcoin can hold above $100,000 and avoid a deeper slide. With market sentiment fragile and external pressures mounting, the next few weeks may prove critical for determining whether this is merely a pause in a longer bull run — or the start of a more significant correction.
