Bitcoin fell below $70,000 on Friday, extending recent declines as institutional outflows and tightening liquidity pressured the market. The cryptocurrency traded at $68,607.23 at the time of reporting, down 9.2% over the previous week according to CoinGecko data.
Market sentiment deteriorated sharply alongside the price decline. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index fell to 20 on Friday, marking its lowest reading in more than four months and entering "extreme fear" territory. The index last reached this level on July 8.
Multiple factors contributed to Bitcoin's weakness. Vikram Subburaj, CEO of crypto exchange Giottus, cited institutional outflows, tightening cryptocurrency liquidity, and expectations of a December Federal Reserve interest rate hike as key drivers. Research firm 10x Research noted Bitcoin's divergence from US equities, declining 5.9% between November 5 and 12 while the Nasdaq 100 gained 6.4%, suggesting the cryptocurrency was responding more to rising Treasury yields and a stronger US dollar than to technology stocks.
Bitcoin increasingly traded alongside gold, which fell 5.5% during the same period, as the US 10-year Treasury yield climbed above 5%.
Market liquidity conditions deteriorated markedly. Institutional trading platform Talos reported that Bitcoin order-book depth across major exchanges fell to $72 million on November 9, roughly 33% below normal levels. Tanay Ved, senior research associate at Talos, warned that thin liquidity combined with elevated leverage created vulnerability to sharp market moves.
US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds experienced sustained withdrawals. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust recorded more than $2 billion in net outflows across nine consecutive trading sessions through Wednesday, while broader funds shed nearly $1.44 billion over five sessions. Preliminary data showed an additional $47.7 million in net outflows on Thursday.
