Bitcoin has fallen nearly $8,000 over the past week, sliding from above $81,000 to below $73,000 as several sources of selling pressure hit the market at the same time.
The latest decline comes amid shrinking stablecoin liquidity, heavy losses among leveraged traders and continued institutional withdrawals from U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Another theory gaining attention is that large artificial intelligence IPOs may be pulling capital toward traditional markets, although there is no clear evidence that these listings are directly causing Bitcoin’s decline.
Bitcoin traded near $73,600 at the time of reporting after briefly falling to around $72,700.
Bitcoin falls nearly 6% in one week
Bitcoin’s latest correction extends a difficult period for the cryptocurrency.
The price has dropped from above $81,000 to the low-$73,000 range in roughly a week, representing a decline of nearly 6%.
The move follows several weeks of weaker demand and persistent selling through U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Investors are also reassessing the outlook for Federal Reserve interest rates after stronger-than-expected inflation data raised concerns that borrowing costs could remain higher for longer.
Bitcoin ETF outflows add to selling pressure
Institutional flows remain one of the biggest headwinds facing Bitcoin.
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded approximately $1.28 billion in net outflows during the first trading week of November.
The selling continued on November 10.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded another $95 million in net withdrawals, marking the fourth consecutive trading day of outflows.
BlackRock’s IBIT accounted for around $78 million of the latest withdrawals.
The fund has now recorded eight consecutive trading sessions of net outflows.
1. USDT supply shrinks by $6.6 billion
One of the less visible factors behind Bitcoin’s decline is weakening stablecoin liquidity.
CryptoQuant reported that Tether’s USDT supply contracted by approximately $6.6 billion over the previous 60 days.
According to the analytics firm, this was the largest contraction in its data series since tracking began in mid-2022.
The decline was even larger than the contraction recorded after the collapse of FTX in December 2022.
Why stablecoin liquidity matters for Bitcoin
Stablecoins such as USDT are widely used throughout cryptocurrency markets.
Traders use them to:
- Buy Bitcoin and altcoins
- Move funds between exchanges
- Provide liquidity
- Settle transactions
- Hold dollar-denominated capital onchain
When stablecoin supply grows, more capital may be available to enter crypto markets.
When supply contracts, the amount of readily available liquidity can decline.
That can make it harder for buyers to absorb heavy selling pressure.
Bitcoin demand has also weakened sharply
CryptoQuant reported that Bitcoin’s apparent demand contracted by approximately 284,000 BTC over 30 days.
The firm described this as the fastest decline in apparent demand since March 2025.
The data suggests that weakness is not limited to ETF flows.
Broader demand across the market has also deteriorated.
That creates a difficult environment when existing holders are simultaneously trying to reduce exposure.
U.S. Bitcoin buying remains weak
The Coinbase Premium Index has also remained negative.
According to CryptoQuant, the indicator recorded negative readings for 30 consecutive days.
The Coinbase Premium compares Bitcoin prices on Coinbase with prices on other major exchanges.
A positive premium can suggest stronger buying demand from U.S.-based investors.
A negative reading generally indicates weaker U.S. demand.
Thirty consecutive negative days reinforce the view that American buying activity has been relatively soft.
CryptoQuant Bull Score drops sharply
CryptoQuant’s Bull Score Index has also deteriorated.
The indicator fell to 20 from 90 on October 13.
The index combines several market signals tracked by the analytics firm.
A lower score suggests that more of those indicators have moved into weaker or bearish territory.
The drop does not guarantee further Bitcoin declines, but it shows how quickly market conditions have changed since October.
2. Too many leveraged Bitcoin longs are vulnerable
The second major factor involves leverage.
Crypto analyst Joao Wedson identified a large imbalance between leveraged long and short positions.
According to his liquidation exposure metric, approximately $579 million in leveraged long positions were vulnerable to liquidation within a 10% Bitcoin price move.
That compared with roughly $147 million in short positions.
The imbalance means significantly more leveraged traders could be forced to sell if Bitcoin continues falling.
Liquidation exposure is not the same as completed liquidations
The $579 million figure represents positions that could be liquidated under certain price movements.
It does not mean all of those positions have already been closed.
This distinction is important.
Liquidation exposure measures potential vulnerability.
Actual liquidation data records positions that have already been forcibly closed by exchanges.
Both are useful, but they answer different questions.
Why leveraged longs can accelerate a selloff
A leveraged trader borrows capital to increase exposure.
That means relatively small Bitcoin price moves can create much larger changes in the trader’s equity.
If the value of collateral falls below the exchange’s minimum requirement, the position may be automatically liquidated.
That creates a forced sell.
If enough leveraged longs are liquidated at the same time, those forced sales can push Bitcoin lower.
That can then trigger additional liquidations.
Crypto liquidations reached around $725 million
CoinGlass data showed total cryptocurrency futures liquidations approaching $725 million over a 24-hour period following the latest U.S. inflation data.
Bitcoin accounted for around $200.5 million of those liquidations.
Approximately 85% of the Bitcoin liquidations came from long positions.
That supports the idea that traders betting on higher prices were hit particularly hard during the latest selloff.
Bitcoin funding rates remain positive
Despite the decline, Bitcoin funding rates remained positive at around 0.0078%.
Positive funding generally means traders holding long perpetual futures positions are paying traders holding shorts.
That indicates bullish leveraged positioning has not disappeared.
If Bitcoin continues falling while funding remains positive, the market could remain vulnerable to additional long liquidations.
Open interest falls while trading volume rises
Crypto futures open interest fell roughly 1% to $127.2 billion.
At the same time, trading volume increased 24% to around $204.8 billion.
That combination can be consistent with positions being closed during a period of intense trading.
Falling open interest means fewer outstanding futures contracts remain after the activity.
Higher volume shows traders are still actively repositioning.
3. Major AI IPOs may be pulling attention from Bitcoin
The third factor is more speculative.
Some analysts believe large technology IPOs could be attracting investment capital that might otherwise remain in Bitcoin and other risk assets.
Crypto analyst Crypto Rover compared Bitcoin’s current decline with the market correction that took place before SpaceX’s June 2026 public listing.
He noted that Bitcoin fell nearly 29% ahead of the SpaceX IPO.
Bitcoin has now fallen roughly 16% ahead of Anthropic’s planned stock market debut.
The IPO comparison does not prove causation
The timing is interesting, but it does not prove that either IPO caused Bitcoin to fall.
Financial markets can decline for many reasons at the same time.
During the current correction, Bitcoin is also dealing with:
- ETF outflows
- Shrinking stablecoin liquidity
- Hot inflation data
- Leveraged liquidations
- Weak U.S. demand
The fact that a major IPO happens during the same period does not establish that money is directly leaving Bitcoin to fund new stock purchases.
Anthropic could raise more than $60 billion
Anthropic’s latest SEC filing proposes selling 825 million Class A shares.
The expected offering price ranges from $70 to $78 per share.
At the top of that range, the company could raise approximately $64.4 billion.
Trading on Nasdaq is expected to begin around November 19.
An IPO of that size could attract significant institutional capital.
However, determining how much of that money would otherwise have been invested in Bitcoin is extremely difficult.
Arthur Hayes has also warned about AI listings
BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has separately argued that major AI public listings could affect Bitcoin.
His concern focuses more broadly on liquidity and financial conditions.
Hayes believes massive AI financing needs and heavy share issuance could create pressure in equity and credit markets.
If banks and investors become more cautious, dollar liquidity could decline.
Bitcoin could then face additional selling pressure before central banks potentially respond with easier monetary policy.
Bitcoin is also facing pressure from higher inflation
The latest U.S. inflation report added another problem for risk assets.
Hotter-than-expected inflation can reduce expectations for interest rate cuts.
Higher rates increase the returns available from cash and government bonds.
That can make riskier assets relatively less attractive.
Bitcoin does not pay a contractual yield, so shifts in interest-rate expectations can influence portfolio allocation.
Higher rates can reduce market liquidity
Borrowing also becomes more expensive when interest rates remain elevated.
Higher financing costs can reduce leverage and discourage speculative investment.
This matters for crypto because a significant portion of market activity is sensitive to liquidity conditions.
When capital becomes more expensive, traders and institutions may reduce risk.
That can amplify the impact of existing ETF withdrawals and weaker stablecoin supply.
Bitcoin dominance is increasing
The weakness has not been limited to Bitcoin.
Most major altcoins have also declined.
At the same time, Bitcoin’s share of the total cryptocurrency market has increased.
CoinMarketCap’s Bitcoin dominance stood around 60.5%.
This suggests altcoins are generally underperforming Bitcoin during the broader risk-off environment.
Altcoin Season Index falls to 43
CoinMarketCap’s Altcoin Season Index stood at 43, down from 49 the previous Thursday.
A lower reading suggests fewer altcoins are outperforming Bitcoin.
The move is consistent with a defensive market environment.
When investors become more cautious, capital often concentrates in larger and more liquid crypto assets rather than smaller altcoins.
Ethereum remains above $2,000
Ethereum fell around 1.6% but remained above the $2,000 level.
ETH traded near $2,055.
Holding above $2,000 provides a psychological support area, but Ethereum is still participating in the broader market weakness.
A deeper Bitcoin correction could put additional pressure on ETH and other major cryptocurrencies.
XRP and BNB also decline
XRP fell toward $1.06.
BNB traded near $680.
Solana, Dogecoin, Hyperliquid, Uniswap, Quant and RAIN were also lower.
The widespread weakness suggests the selloff is not isolated to one part of the crypto market.
Broader risk sentiment remains cautious.
Zcash leads major losses
Zcash was one of the weakest large cryptocurrencies during the session.
ZEC fell around 13% and traded below $1,000.
That sharp decline contrasts with privacy-focused rival Monero.
Monero gained around 5.6% and traded above $575.
The divergence shows that individual token-specific factors can still matter even during a market-wide downturn.
Some altcoins still posted gains
Not every cryptocurrency declined.
BTW gained around 10% to approximately $1.08.
Avalanche increased around 4% to roughly $8.70.
These exceptions show that pockets of buying remain.
However, the overall market trend was still negative.
Fear and Greed Index remains in cautious territory
The Crypto Fear and Greed Index stood at 26.
That level indicates significant caution among investors.
Fear readings often appear after sharp corrections when traders become less willing to take risk.
The indicator does not predict exactly where Bitcoin will bottom.
But it provides another measure of deteriorating market sentiment.
What would help Bitcoin stabilize?
Several developments could improve the outlook.
Stablecoin supply could begin expanding again.
That would suggest more capital is entering or remaining within the crypto ecosystem.
ETF outflows could slow or reverse.
A return to consistent net inflows would provide evidence that institutional demand is recovering.
Leverage also needs to normalize.
Lower funding and fewer vulnerable long positions could reduce the risk of liquidation-driven selloffs.
What could push Bitcoin lower?
The bearish case would strengthen if stablecoin liquidity continues shrinking.
Persistent ETF withdrawals would add further pressure.
Another wave of long liquidations could accelerate downside momentum.
Higher inflation or stronger economic data could also keep interest rates elevated for longer.
Finally, a broader selloff in technology stocks or other risk assets could spill over into crypto.
The $72,000–$73,000 area is now important
Bitcoin recently traded as low as approximately $72,700.
That makes the low-$73,000 region an important short-term area to watch.
If buyers defend the zone, Bitcoin could attempt another recovery.
A sustained break below it would suggest the latest correction is not yet complete.
The next move will depend heavily on whether demand returns after the recent liquidation wave.
ETF flows may provide one of the clearest signals
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have become an important source of institutional demand.
When they consistently attract capital, they can support the spot market.
When they experience large redemptions, buyers elsewhere need to absorb the additional selling pressure.
BlackRock’s IBIT is particularly important because it is one of the largest products in the category.
Its eight-session outflow streak suggests institutional sentiment remains weak.
Stablecoins may be even more important
ETF flows capture only one part of the market.
Stablecoin liquidity affects a much wider portion of crypto trading.
A $6.6 billion contraction in USDT supply means less stablecoin capital may be immediately available across exchanges and DeFi markets.
If that trend reverses, it could provide broader support for cryptocurrency prices.
Until then, liquidity remains one of the main risks.
The AI IPO theory remains unproven
Large public listings could influence how investors allocate capital.
An Anthropic IPO worth tens of billions of dollars could attract substantial demand.
But there is no direct evidence showing that investors are selling Bitcoin specifically to participate in the offering.
The theory should therefore be treated as one possible influence rather than a confirmed cause of the correction.
Final thoughts
Bitcoin’s nearly 6% weekly decline appears to reflect several pressures hitting the market at the same time.
The clearest factors are weakening liquidity and heavy leverage.
USDT supply has contracted by approximately $6.6 billion, while ETF withdrawals show that institutional demand remains soft.
At the same time, large numbers of leveraged long positions have been vulnerable to liquidation, helping turn relatively ordinary price declines into sharper selloffs.
The possible effect of major AI IPOs is more uncertain.
Large offerings may compete for investor capital, but the available evidence does not show that they directly caused Bitcoin’s decline.
For Bitcoin to stabilize, the market will likely need stronger spot buying, improving stablecoin liquidity and a reduction in leveraged positioning.
Until those conditions improve, the cryptocurrency may remain vulnerable to further volatility.
Disclosure: This article does not constitute investment advice. The content is provided for educational and informational purposes only.
