Crypto Carnage: BTC Crashes Below $90K, ETH Tumbles Under $3K Amid Market Panic

Bloodbath on Blockchain Street—Bitcoin and Ethereum lead the crypto rout as fear grips traders.

### The Great Unraveling

BTC’s nosedive past $90K and ETH’s collapse below $3K signal a market-wide freakout. No sector is spared—degen gamblers and institutional "HODLers" alike are sweating.

### Liquidity Ghost Town

Bid-ask spreads widen like a desert canyon. Even stablecoins flinch. Traders scramble for exits, but the doors seem narrower than a Layer 1 block.

### Wall Street’s Tiny Violin

Traditional finance vultures circle, muttering about "irrational exuberance"—as if their 2008 subprime buffet never happened. Crypto winters build character; banking crises build bailouts.

Next support levels? Ask the leveraged longs now repurposing their Lambo dreams as food-delivery side hustles.

Crypto market drops sharply as stocks decline

Bitcoin’s MOVE below $90,000 marks a 27% retreat from its October all-time high. The token lost more than 3% on November 17 alone, adding to a month-long trend of fading momentum.

Ethereum followed with a deeper 4% drop to $2,983, continuing a 40% correction from its August peak. Major altcoins suffered even worse weekly losses. Solana sank more than 21%, XRP dropped nearly 14%, and Cardano slid 22% as investors reduced exposure to high-risk tokens.

The downturn mirrored traditional markets. The S&P 500 fell 61 points to 6,672, while the Nasdaq dropped 192 points to 22,708. Both indices closed below their 50-day moving averages, breaking streaks not seen since 2007 and 1995. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average also tumbled more than 550 points ahead of Nvidia’s earnings report, amplifying concerns about weakening tech-sector leadership.

Bitcoin fills key CME gap after months

A notable technical event unfolded during the slide, Bitcoin finally closed its last major CME futures gap near $92,000. The gap had been open since April because CME futures stop trading on weekends while spot markets continue.

$BTC There it is. The last major CME gap has now also been closed ✅ https://t.co/yIFp9ZQgWI pic.twitter.com/b0l88z4o7L

Traders often view these gaps as magnets for price action. cryptocurrency analyst DaanCryptoTrades confirmed the long-awaited closure, calling it a removal of “downside overhang.” 

However, he cautioned that a gap fill does not guarantee a reversal. With demand weakening and liquidity thinning, analysts say Bitcoin’s short-term structure remains fragile.  

The next sessions will show whether the market stabilizes or extends the decline toward deeper support levels.

Macro pressure builds as rate-cut hopes fade

Macroeconomic forces added fuel to the decline. The Empire State Manufacturing Index unexpectedly surged to 18.7, reducing the probability of a December Federal Reserve rate cut. This index is a monthly survey to measure manufacturing and business conditions in New York state.

Market-based predictions changed rapidly: Polymarket information indicated 55% probability of no rate cut whereas CME futures indicated about 60% probability that the Fed will not cut rates.

Higher-for-longer interest rates typically pressure risk assets, especially those reliant on liquidity and growth narratives. Research firm 10X Research noted that new buyer activity stalled in early October, giving sellers an advantage. 

10x Weekly Crypto Kickoff – Elevated bitcoin Crash Risk? pic.twitter.com/0hlHQoYvBm

Analysts caution that long-term holders are yet to realize huge profits, and as such, additional declines may cause forced liquidations.

Investor sentiment has weakened sharply. Options data shows put volume exceeding call volume, a sign that traders expect more volatility or are hedging against further drops. The industry’s sentiment index is now NEAR recent lows.

On-chain data shows signs of capitulation

On-chain metrics from Glassnode and Bitfinex indicate that short-term holders are taking realized losses, a pattern often seen during capitulation phases. 

These are the conditions that have been observed to be close to the market bottoms in the past and analysts warn that further retracements can still be experienced.

Popular crypto analyst Benjamin Cowen opined that Bitcoin might revisit its 200-week exponential moving average of between $60,000 and $70,000. The next major support zone is considered to be $76,000 by others.

While I think Bitcoin will go to the 200W SMA ($60k-$70k) in 2026, there is a high probability it will have a bounce back to the 200D SMA before going that low.

All prior cycle bear markets were confirmed by a macro lower high at the 200D SMA. pic.twitter.com/1S477LVLhf

Still, several analysts anticipate a temporary relief rally, as the over-sold situations have been created in various indicators.

Ethereum loses key $3,000 level amid weak network activity

Ethereum’s drop to $2,983 has underscored the broader risk-off mood. Ether has moved mostly in tandem with altcoins, showing no asset-specific catalysts strong enough to shift sentiment. 

Analysts say macro factors, from U.S. government shutdown fears to rising global tariffs, have overshadowed Ethereum’s internal developments. Network activity has also slowed. 

Total Value Locked on Ethereum fell to a four-month low of $81 billion, and DEX trading volumes decreased by almost 27% in the last month. Lower usage reduces ETH burn rates, weakening the token’s supply-side support.

Companies building ETH reserves, including Bitmine Immersion and The Ether Machine, now face unrealized losses as their shares trade below net asset value. This discourages new investors and reduces demand for ETH-linked financing.

Layer-2 networks show growth despite downtrend

Even during the recession, Ethereum layer-2 networks are growing. Base processed more than 103 million transactions in a week, rivaling volumes on chains with far higher deposits. This growth reinforces Ethereum’s lead in Real World Asset tokenization and decentralized stablecoin infrastructure.

But for prices to recover meaningfully, analysts say global uncertainty must ease. With U.S. government debt rising and energy costs affecting the AI and data-center industries, markets remain sensitive to shocks.

Can Bitcoin hold above $89K?

The next few days will show whether Bitcoin will stabilize at around $89,000 or drop below. Direction will be guided by economic data, remarks of central bank and institutional flows.

At the moment, both Bitcoin and Ethereum are under a high-risk situation with traders waiting to get better indicators after one of the steepest pullbacks in the market in months.

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