Bitcoin Near $91K as Market Fear Spikes and $1B in Liquidations Hit Traders
Bitcoin (BTC $84,390.27) hovered around $91,400 on Tuesday as market sentiment plunged to “extreme fear,” volatility surged, and leveraged traders faced over $1 billion in liquidations. Ether (ETH $2,745.25) traded near $3,060, while most altcoins continued their decline.
The Fear & Greed Index dropped to 15/100, a level not seen since April, before Bitcoin defied bearish expectations and surged from $76,000 to above $100,000 in a month. While such sentiment may suggest a potential bounce, Bitcoin could first test the $87,500 support level to flush out remaining leveraged positions.
Monday’s trading illustrated the risks of emotional decisions, with one trader losing $5.5 million after shorting near the bottom with 30x leverage. As Warren Buffett once said, “Buy when there is blood in the streets, even if it’s your own.”
Derivatives and Volatility
Over $1 billion in crypto futures were liquidated in the past 24 hours, mostly long positions. BTC’s 30-day implied volatility (Volmex BVIV) briefly hit 55% annualized, the highest since the Oct. 10 crash. BTC futures open interest reached a six-week high of 730,550 BTC, confirming a downtrend alongside falling spot prices. ETH futures OI remains around 12.5 million. Perpetual funding rates are mildly positive for most tokens, except TRX. Options activity shows a stronger bias for puts, including BTC $90,000 strike puts expiring Nov. 28 and ETH $4,000 call rollovers.
Altcoins and Market Trends
Privacy coins led losses: Zcash (ZEC $516.84) fell 14% and Dash (DASH $56.45) dropped 9%, surpassing declines in ETH and XRP. ASTER and HYPE bucked the trend, rising 8.5% and 5%, respectively. The CoinDesk 10 index, excluding Bitcoin, lost 3.8% over 24 hours, adding to a 19.7% monthly decline.
Altcoins show lower highs and lower lows, reflecting ongoing downtrends. However, previous bull markets have weathered 30% corrections, suggesting the crypto market has not yet entered a full “crypto winter.”
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