Bitcoin dropped below $70,000 in a sharp market-wide selloff that combined tighter U.S. inflation data, sustained outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs and renewed pressure on risk assets after Nvidia's leadership change. Ether also fell below $2,000, declining more than 6% over 24 hours, while only 16 of the 200 largest tokens by market value posted gains, according to Quantify Crypto data.
The move placed Bitcoin back near levels last tested earlier in November, after a selloff pushed the asset below $75,000 on Nov. 10. Traders were focused on the $68,000 to $69,000 area following the latest drop, a range where some market participants reported lower leverage and fresh spot buying interest.
A negative Coinbase premium index added to signs of weak U.S. demand. Glassnode said the measure, which compares Bitcoin pricing on Coinbase with prices on other major venues, remained negative through the retreat from September's high. Its 30-day average reached its lowest level since February, indicating that buying pressure from U.S.-based participants has been limited during the correction.
Inflation surprise raises December rate expectations
The immediate macroeconomic trigger came from October consumer-price data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Headline CPI rose 0.4% month on month, above the 0.3% consensus forecast cited in the supplied material. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy, increased 0.3%, compared with expectations for a 0.2% gain.
The hotter-than-expected report prompted markets to assign a higher probability to another Federal Reserve rate increase in December. Pricing for a 50-basis-point increase briefly rose to 15% before easing to 9%, while the implied probability of a 25-basis-point move stayed above 90%, according to the supplied market-pricing data.
U.S. Treasury markets reflected the same repricing. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury moved back above 5%, raising the return available on government debt and tightening financial conditions across risk-sensitive markets. Bitcoin and other tokens often trade alongside high-growth technology stocks during such shifts, particularly when traders cut leveraged positions or reduce exposure ahead of policy-sensitive economic releases.
The next major test will be U.S. producer-price data, with economists expecting the October headline PPI measure to rise 0.4%. A result at or above that estimate could reinforce expectations that interest rates will remain higher for longer, while a softer reading could relieve some of the pressure that followed the CPI release.
Nvidia selloff adds pressure to risk assets
Crypto's decline also overlapped with a volatile session for Nvidia after Jensen Huang announced his resignation on Nov. 12, according to the supplied material. Nvidia named Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress as interim chief executive officer.
Nvidia shares fell more than 10% during the session before closing down about 4.34%. The company has become a major barometer for enthusiasm around artificial intelligence spending and high-growth technology, making its sudden leadership change relevant beyond the semiconductor sector.
The stock-market reaction did not directly determine Bitcoin's move, but it added another reason for traders to reduce exposure to volatile assets. Crypto had already entered the session under pressure from interest-rate concerns, leaving the market more vulnerable to a broader risk-off move.
Thirty-day annualized Bitcoin volatility stood at 35.7%, while options expiring on Nov. 20 implied volatility of 41.2%, according to the figures provided. The gap suggests options traders were pricing a greater chance of near-term swings than the market had experienced over the prior month.
ETF outflows and shrinking stablecoin supply weaken buying capacity
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs extended a five-session run of net outflows totaling more than $1.4 billion, according to SoSoValue. The products recorded roughly $300 million in net redemptions on Nov. 11, with BlackRock's IBIT accounting for most of that day's outflow.
The ETF withdrawals come after the products had become a major channel for U.S. market demand. The supplied data put total ETF Bitcoin holdings at $92.7 billion, equivalent to about 1.46% of Bitcoin's market capitalization. Persistent outflows do not automatically translate into immediate selling of the underlying Bitcoin, but they remove a source of recurring institutional demand during a period of falling prices.
Stablecoin supply has also contracted. Total supply fell by $14.2 billion over the past 30 days, the largest 30-day decline since 2022, according to the supplied figures. Stablecoins are widely used as settlement assets and as readily available capital for token purchases, so a shrinking supply can coincide with reduced trading liquidity and less capacity to absorb selloffs.
Prediction-market pricing showed a cautious outlook for the remainder of November. Polymarket priced a 56% probability of Bitcoin reaching $65,000 during the month, compared with a 29% probability of returning above $75,000. The market assigned a 19% chance of Bitcoin falling below $60,000.
MSCI exclusions create a separate equity-market risk
A separate source of pressure emerged from MSCI's revised classification rules for crypto treasury-linked companies. The index provider removed Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy, from the MSCI USA Index, while Metaplanet is set to leave the MSCI Japan Small Cap Index and Upexi the MSCI USA Micro Cap Index.
The changes affect publicly traded companies that hold substantial crypto reserves rather than Bitcoin itself. Yet the consequences could extend into crypto markets because these companies have been an equity-market route for gaining leveraged exposure to Bitcoin.
Funds tracking the MSCI Global Investable Market Index were estimated to hold about 13 million Strategy shares worth roughly $1.487 billion, according to the supplied material. JPMorgan estimated index-related forced selling of $1.8 billion to $2.8 billion, potentially rising to about $8.8 billion if other major index providers adopt similar policies.
That estimate concerns shares, not direct Bitcoin sales. Even so, lower demand for crypto treasury stocks could constrain one of the channels through which listed companies have raised capital or maintained large Bitcoin positions.
Bitcoin's ability to stabilize near the high-$60,000 range will now depend heavily on whether macro data allows Treasury yields to retreat and whether ETF outflows begin to slow. Until then, negative U.S. demand indicators, reduced stablecoin liquidity and elevated options pricing leave the market exposed to abrupt moves around incoming inflation data.
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