Bitcoin clawed back some ground on Nov 18 after sinking below US$90,000 to a seven-month low, finding tentative buyers in a market still shunning risk.
Reuters reported that the world’s largest cryptocurrency was last up 1.9% at US$93,532 after touching US$89,286.75, a level that erased all its gains for the year and left it trading 26% below its October peak above US$126,000.
The broader crypto market has taken a heavy hit, with roughly US$1.2 trillion wiped out in the past six weeks, according to CoinGecko, as investors price in lingering doubts over future US rate cuts and a wobbling global equities rally.
Sentiment has been further rattled by accelerating outflows from US spot bitcoin ETFs. Since equity markets plunged on Oct 10 amid renewed US-China tariff worries, about US$3.7 billion has exited spot bitcoin funds, including US$2.3 billion in November alone, Morningstar data shows.
The unwind has dragged down crypto-exposed stocks including Strategy, Coinbase and miner Marathon Holdings, though many bounced intraday in line with bitcoin’s recovery.
Standard Chartered warned that a sustained drop below US$90,000 could leave half of publicly listed crypto-treasury firms “underwater”. Listed companies collectively hold 4% of all Bitcoin and 3.1% of Ethereum, the bank noted.
Strategy, the largest corporate holder, has continued adding to its trove. Founder Michael Saylor said the firm purchased 8,178 Bitcoin on Nov 17, bringing its stash to 649,870 tokens at an average cost of roughly US$74,433 per coin.
Ethereum has also been battered, shedding nearly 40% from its August high above US$4,955, pressured by the same macro and liquidity headwinds rippling through bitcoin.
Despite the modest rebound, traders say the market remains fragile — and confidence, as one analyst put it, “can erode with remarkable speed”.
