Bitcoin plunged to $99,000 on Coinbase on Tuesday evening, the lowest level since May, before bouncing to $102,000 on Wednesday morning.

The move extends a steep correction that has wiped nearly 20% from Bitcoin’s all-time high of $126,000 reached in early October.

Crypto’s market capitalisation is also down about 20%, now just under $3.5 trillion.

“Sentiment is a bit low among VC funds and trading firms,” Annabelle Huang, founder of blockchain infrastructure firm Altius, told DL News. “A rate cut seems a lot less likely than it used to, and we’re likely to stay with high interest rates for longer than we expected.”

The weakness reflects a broader risk-off mood as markets digest uncertainty clouding the Federal Reserve’s big December meeting, the prolonged US government shutdown, and stagnant liquidity conditions.

The CME FedWatch Tool shows investors see a 74% chance of another rate cut in December.

Still, the Fed’s cautious tone last week suggests policymakers may prefer to pause and assess incoming data— a move that could prolong volatility across risk assets.

‘We’re seeing wallets from the earliest days of Bitcoin waking up and selling for the first time.'

Kyle Chassé, founder of venture capital firm MV Global

Mike McGlone, senior commodity strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence, warned that $100,000 Bitcoin remains critical support.

“If it doesn’t hold,” he said, “a great reset worthy of the best up-year for gold versus down for crude oil in history may be getting started.”

Fallout continues

US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded yet another $566 million in selling yesterday, according to DefiLlama data, adding to the downward slide.

Whales are also selling millions. In one major move, mining firm Marathon Digital transferred $236 million in Bitcoin to institutional exchanges, including FalconX, TwoPrime, Galaxy Digital, and Coinbase Prime. Marathon Digital did not immediately comment.

Lacie Zhang, research analyst at Bitget Wallet, told DL News that Bitcoin will likely trade between $94,000 and $118,000 in the near term.

“The lower bound represents a healthy retracement zone consistent with subdued ETF inflows,” she said. “If Bitcoin holds above key resistance while volatility eases, confidence may gradually rebuild.”

Still, others see the correction as reason to be optimistic.

Kyle Chassé, founder of venture capital firm MV Global, told DL News that the current downturn reflects a generational handover in Bitcoin ownership.

“We’re seeing wallets from the earliest days of Bitcoin waking up and selling for the first time,” he said.

“These older holders are taking profits, while institutions, ETFs, and even sovereign players are stepping in.”

Crypto market movers

• Bitcoin is down 2.3% over the past 24 hours, trading at $101,600.
• Ethereum is down 4.6% over the past 24 hours, trading at $3,300.

What we’re reading

• SBF returns to court seeking new trial over FTX collapse — DL News
• Balancer suffers $128m smart contract exploit despite multiple audits — DL News
• Zcash Developer Reveals Q4 Roadmap — Unchained
• Ethereum Is Becoming Wall Street’s Favourite & Lido’s the Gateway with Izzy & Kean — Milk Road
• Ethereum Foundation relaunches grants programme with new focus on privacy tech — DL News

Lance Datskoluo is DL News’ Europe-based markets correspondent. Got a tip? Email at lance@dlnews.com.