Bitcoin tumbled on Wednesday, briefly piercing the psychologically significant $100,000 level as a broader de-risking across global markets spilled into digital assets. The largest cryptocurrency last traded 4.7% lower at $101,718 by 23:32 ET (04:32 GMT), after touching an intraday trough of $99,010—its weakest since mid-June. With the decline extending more than 20% from the early-October record high of $126,186, Bitcoin has formally entered bear-market territory.

The move was exacerbated by a sharp unwinding of leverage. Data from CoinGlass indicated that more than $1.27 billion in crypto positions were liquidated earlier this week, the bulk of them longs, as forced selling accelerated downside momentum. The liquidation cascade echoed a parallel pullback in high-beta equities, where renewed worries about AI-driven valuation excesses and cautionary remarks from major Wall Street bank CEOs triggered heavy U.S. selling. The Nasdaq Composite fell 2% on Tuesday, a risk cue that crypto prices often shadow.

The latest leg lower builds on October’s weakness, when a flash crash early in the month left Bitcoin struggling to reclaim altitude. Attempts to stabilize above $110,000 repeatedly faltered amid tighter financial conditions and fading optimism over a swift Federal Reserve easing cycle.

Corporate headlines offered a mixed counterpoint. Mara Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA)—a large Bitcoin miner and one of the biggest corporate BTC holders—posted stronger-than-expected Q3 results on Tuesday, with revenue up 92% year over year and a swing to quarterly profit. Shares rose 3% after hours but nevertheless closed the session down 6.7%, underscoring how micro strength is being overwhelmed by macro risk aversion. Management highlighted ongoing diversification into AI and data-center services alongside core mining operations.

Altcoins tracked the slide. Ether dropped 8.2% to $3,328.50, after nearly breaching $3,000 a day earlier and setting a near four-month low. XRP fell 4% to $2.244; BNB eased 0.4% to $945.60. Solana slipped 4.9%, while Cardano edged 0.3% lower. Among meme tokens, Dogecoin bucked the trend with a 2.3% gain, whereas $TRUMP eased 0.6%.

Outlook

Near-term direction hinges on two intertwined forces: the durability of the risk-off impulse in equities and the pace of de-leveraging in crypto derivatives. Stabilization likely requires signs of cooling equity volatility, a reset in positioning, and evidence that forced liquidations are abating. Absent that, rallies may struggle to sustain above recent breakdown zones, leaving Bitcoin beholden to macro sentiment and liquidity conditions.

This article is for information only and does not constitute investment advice.