Bitcoin showed early signs of stabilization on Friday after a sharp market-wide sell-off pushed the cryptocurrency toward $75,000. The largest cryptocurrency briefly recovered toward $76,150 after touching approximately $75,200 late Thursday, suggesting buyers were beginning to step in following the decline.
Ethereum also recorded a modest recovery, gaining around 0.3%, while the broader 80 Index advanced 0.2%. Despite these small gains, the market remains under pressure: Bitcoin is still down around 5.3% over the previous 24 hours, and Ethereum has lost approximately 7.3%.
AI-Driven Sell-Off Triggers More Than $1 Billion in Crypto Liquidations
Thursday’s stock market decline quickly spread into the cryptocurrency sector, highlighting the continued relationship between digital assets and traditional risk markets. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 5.5% as investors reacted to concerns that the newly elected Democratic majority in Congress could introduce additional obstacles for the expansion of AI data centers.
According to CNN on X, $2.5 trillion was wiped off the value of the tech-heavy Nasdaq on Thursday as investors rushed to dump tech stocks, rattled by fears that Democrats’ midterm victories could slow the AI buildout. Another force made the sell-off more brutal: investors who had borrowed heavily to bet on the boom were under pressure to sell.
Approximately $1.1 billion of the crypto liquidations involved long positions, meaning traders betting on higher cryptocurrency prices were responsible for most of the losses. This suggests the market experienced a substantial leverage reset as falling prices forced traders to close positions or triggered automatic liquidations.
Bitcoin’s derivatives market also showed signs of changing sentiment. Open interest increased from $21.8 billion to approximately $22.1 billion, indicating that traders were returning to the market despite the recent volatility. However, the increase does not necessarily signal renewed bullish confidence; much of the activity appears to reflect traders rebuilding positions after the liquidation event.
Bitcoin ETF Outflows Add to Selling Pressure
Institutional demand also remains an important concern as Bitcoin attempts to establish a stronger recovery. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded additional outflows on Thursday, reversing some of the optimism that followed the midterm elections.
Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) experienced approximately $200 million in withdrawals, while BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) recorded another $105 million in outflows. The withdrawals extended IBIT’s consecutive outflow streak to five trading sessions, highlighting the cautious approach institutional investors are currently taking toward Bitcoin exposure.
Traders Turn Their Attention to the Latest US Jobs Report
Beyond developments in the stock and cryptocurrency markets, investors are also preparing for another important economic event. The US employment report is scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, with economists surveyed by FactSet expecting the economy to have added approximately 65,000 jobs during October.
The figures could influence expectations surrounding the Federal Reserve’s next monetary policy decisions. A weaker-than-expected employment report could strengthen expectations for a more cautious approach to interest rates, potentially improving sentiment toward risk assets. On the other hand, stronger employment figures could complicate expectations for monetary easing and create additional uncertainty for investors.
With Bitcoin already struggling to maintain its recent gains, the employment data could become another important catalyst for short-term market direction.
Privacy Coins Show Greater Resilience as Altcoin Sentiment Weakens
Not every cryptocurrency experienced the same level of selling pressure during Thursday’s market decline. Privacy-focused assets demonstrated relatively stronger performance, with Monero (XMR) falling approximately 3.2% over 24 hours compared with Bitcoin’s 5.3% decline.
Zcash (ZEC) also attracted attention after activating its NU7 upgrade early Friday. The update reduced the target time between blocks from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, while the token gained approximately 1% since midnight UTC.
Other projects experienced considerably more difficult trading conditions. Hyperliquid (HYPE) has fallen approximately 19% from its $96 peak reached the previous week. The token had rallied following news of a deal involving Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) and Trade[XYZ] to introduce Hyperliquid-based perpetual futures to US retail traders, but some of that optimism has since faded.
Injective (INJ), meanwhile, has performed relatively well, gaining approximately 14% over the week after Nasdaq approved the listing of Canary Capital’s staked INJ ETF, according to an SEC filing.
Despite these individual gains, the broader altcoin market continues to show signs of weakening speculative interest. CoinMarketCap’s Altcoin Season Index dropped to 44 out of 100, its lowest reading since September.
Bitcoin Faces Key Liquidity Levels Around $75K and $77K
Looking at the technical picture, Bitcoin is approaching an important area that could determine whether the latest recovery develops into a stronger rebound or becomes another temporary bounce.
On the upside, the $76,800–$77,000 range represents an important level to watch. A convincing move above this zone could help Bitcoin regain some of its lost momentum and improve short-term market sentiment.
For bulls, the immediate objective is to defend the $75,000 area and establish a stronger position above $76,000. Failure to maintain this support could expose Bitcoin to another move toward the $74,000 liquidity zone. Reclaiming $77,000 would represent an encouraging development, although a sustained recovery would require stronger buying interest and improved institutional demand.
For now, BTC’s technical outlook remains cautious. The combination of ETF outflows, elevated derivatives volatility, and uncertainty surrounding the broader financial markets suggests the next few trading sessions could be particularly important.
