Bitcoin wrapped October in the red despite setting a new all-time high earlier in the month. After touching $126,200 in the first week, BTC plunged during a record futures wipeout and settled into a $106,000–$115,000 range. The usual “Uptober” seasonal pattern failed to materialize, even as macro headlines and a Federal Reserve rate cut failed to sustain a rally.
As of this morning, the crypto market showed mixed sentiment:
- Bitcoin (BTC): $110,211
- Ethereum (ETH): $3,860
- XRP (XRP): $2.51
- BNB (BNB): $1,087
- Solana (SOL): $186
- Tether (USDT): ₽82.50
- Total crypto market cap: $3.70 trillion
- Bitcoin dominance: 59.97%
- Crypto Fear & Greed Index: 33 (fear)
- 24h standout moves: Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) +35%; DoubleZero (2Z) −6%
Bitcoin’s October whipsaw BTC hit a record $126,200 in early October following a late-September rally from around $109,000. Days later, the market saw the largest cascade of futures liquidations on record, with roughly $20 billion in positions wiped out within 24 hours on October 11. The subsequent consolidation kept BTC below its peak, underscoring a break from the historically bullish October–November seasonality.
Macro and market drivers
- BTC briefly climbed above $111,000 after reports of a “remarkable” meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping, but gains faded. A Fed rate cut also failed to deliver lasting momentum as traders remained cautious after the liquidation shock.
- Analysts point to post-liquidation risk aversion and range-bound trading as key reasons behind Bitcoin’s sideways movement into early November.
Institutional and market structure updates
- Spot Solana ETFs: Bitwise and Grayscale launched spot Solana exchange-traded funds with staking features, highlighting growing institutional interest in SOL-based products.
- Fee dynamics: Hyperliquid and BNB Chain outpaced Solana by fee revenue during the period, signaling shifting on-chain activity.
- Stablecoins: Visa said it will add support for four additional stablecoins, expanding settlement options across its network.
- Investor flows: BlackRock’s chief executive discussed strong demand for gold and cryptocurrencies amid the current macro backdrop.
- Privacy trade: Zcash (ZEC) surged roughly 700% over the past month, driven by a spike in demand for privacy-focused assets.
Bitcoin protocol debate A new proposal to curb non-transactional (non-financial) data in Bitcoin blocks sparked a rift within the community. Proponents argue it preserves block space for financial transactions, while critics warn it risks censoring legitimate use cases and undermining Bitcoin’s neutrality.
AI and crypto crossover
- Telegram plans to launch a decentralized AI network on the TON blockchain, targeting scalable inference and AI services integrated with its ecosystem.
- Media reports suggest OpenAI is preparing a public listing at a potential $1 trillion valuation.
- In a reported crypto trading competition, DeepSeek outperformed GPT-5.
- Mysten Labs warned that AI in the hands of North Korean threat actors poses a greater near-term risk than quantum computing.
- Nvidia’s market capitalization surpassed $5 trillion; the company unveiled technology to connect quantum computers to its AI chips.
- xAI launched a Wikipedia-style knowledge platform intended to compete with incumbent community encyclopedias.
Conclusion Markets enter November with cautious sentiment after October’s volatility, record liquidations, and a failed “Uptober.” Watch for continued flows into newly launched Solana ETFs, developments in stablecoin integrations, and the ongoing Bitcoin blockspace debate. Macro signals and risk appetite—alongside accelerating AI-crypto convergence—remain key catalysts for price direction.