Bitcoin slipped below the six-figure mark again on Thursday, marking the third such drop this month as concerns over the U.S. economy continued to weigh on global markets. The flagship cryptocurrency fell more than 2% in the past day, sliding to around $99,611, according to CoinGecko—a sharp reversal from its record high of $126,080 reached in October. The repeated dips below $100,000 in November have interrupted a six-month streak in which Bitcoin stayed consistently above that threshold.
The downturn mirrored a wider pullback in risk assets, with tech stocks and other major cryptocurrencies also retreating as fresh economic data signalled growing fragility in the U.S. labour market. Analysts pointed to persistent worries around slowing hiring, declining payrolls, and uncertainty around monetary policy as key drivers behind the market’s unease.
Dilin Wu, a research strategist at Pepperstone, told Decrypt that the short-term volatility shouldn’t be surprising given the current macro backdrop. She noted that institutional demand has softened, large Bitcoin holders have become less active, and ETF outflows have continued to weigh on price momentum. Wu suggested that while the medium-term outlook for Bitcoin remains constructive, the market lacks the strong inflows and conviction needed to push prices decisively upward.
ETF movements have been a significant part of the pressure. Investors have withdrawn billions from U.S. Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds over the past two weeks, triggering additional selling as fund managers rebalance their portfolios. Combined redemptions recently crossed $2.6 billion, one of the largest outflow periods in the short history of crypto ETFs.
Despite the turbulence, sentiment on prediction platforms remains cautiously optimistic. Users on Myriad Markets currently assign a higher probability to Bitcoin rising to $115,000 than falling to $85,000, suggesting that many still expect the broader trend to remain intact. Some altcoins offered a mixed performance: Ethereum slid about 5% to roughly $3,265, Solana fell around 3.5% to nearly $148, while XRP edged higher after the launch of a spot ETF tied to the asset.
Liquidations intensified as the market pulled back, with CoinGlass reporting about $501 million in positions wiped out over the last day. Bitcoin accounted for roughly $165 million of that total, with long traders—those betting on rising prices—facing the majority of the losses.
Still, not everyone sees the latest dip as a cause for alarm. Joe DiPasquale, CEO of BitBull Capital, argued that Bitcoin’s chart remains structurally strong, saying the market continues to form higher lows and attract buyers at support levels. According to him, that pattern signals underlying confidence among investors even as macro pressure persists.
The broader sell-off came as the U.S. government reopened after its longest shutdown on record. Political tension over the release of key inflation data added to the market’s jitters, especially as expectations for upcoming rate cuts weakened. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has struck a cautious tone in recent weeks, warning that easing monetary policy is “not a foregone conclusion” despite signs of an economic slowdown, including reports showing tens of thousands of jobs lost across October.
