Bitcoin Falls Below $70,000 for the First Time Since August as $1.5 Billion in Bets Are Wiped Out

Bitcoin fell below $70,000 overnight for the first time since August. It lost about 6.7% in 24 hours and traded near $68,000 on the morning of November 13. Three days ago it was still above $73,000.

Why it matters

The drop hit traders who borrowed to bet on higher prices. About $1.5 billion of such positions were liquidated, meaning exchanges closed them by force when the losses ate the traders' deposits. Almost all of them were long positions, bets on a rise. Forced selling like this tends to push the price down faster.

For holders who don't use leverage, nothing is forced. But mood has turned sharply. The Fear & Greed Index fell to 20, "extreme fear". The whole crypto market is worth about $2.30 trillion, and bitcoin's share of it is about 60%.

What hit the market

It was a rough day for risky assets in general:

• Nvidia. The board announced that CEO Jensen Huang had stepped down from all his posts after reports of his affairs. The shares fell more than 14% at the open, and the company's value briefly dropped below $4 trillion. Nvidia is the face of the AI boom, so the news shook tech stocks.
• A stronger dollar. The US dollar index rose to its highest level in 19 months. A strong dollar usually weighs on bitcoin and gold.
• Interest rates. Markets price a 90% chance that the Fed raises rates on December 9, according to CME FedWatch. The Federal Reserve's John Williams said inflation is "too high".

Ether fell too and is now below $2,000. Gold and silver lost more than $1.1 trillion in market value in a day.

What's next

Bitcoin options worth about $2.3 billion expire on Deribit today at 08:00 UTC. Analysts at Glassnode point to a large cluster of leveraged long positions near $60,000: if the price gets there, another wave of forced selling is possible.