BTC breaks $90K floor, ETH, SOL, XRP bleed as liquidations top $1B

Crypto prices continued their downtrend on Tuesday, Nov. 18, as Bitcoin dipped to a nearly 7-month low and altcoins bled, with crypto liquidations topping $1 billion.

Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s largest crypto asset, sharply fell from $95,903 to an intraday low of $89,455, its lowest level since April. Trading at $89,812 when writing, it is down 5.1% in the past 24 hours and 28.6% from its all-time high of $126,080 reached just six weeks ago.

Ethereum (ETH) closely followed Bitcoin’s footsteps, facing a 5.3% correction on the day and settling at near $3k levels, while other leading altcoins by market cap, such as XRP (XRP), Solana (SOL), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Cardano (ADA), were also in red with losses ranging between 3-5%. 

Only six cryptocurrencies among the top 100 were still held to a green print, with the leading laggards being Pump.fun (PUMP), Zcash (ZEC), and Mantle (MNT), which dropped by over 9% in the last 24 hours.

The sea of red had brought the overall market cap down 4.2% to $3.18 trillion as nearly $140 billion was wiped out in a single day.

Derivative traders mirrored this risk-off sentiment, as CoinGlass data show that $1.01 billion has been liquidated from the broader crypto market in the past 24 hours, with $718 million coming from long liquidations.

Such liquidations could instill renewed caution among leveraged traders, especially after the massive $20 billion in liquidations experienced just a month earlier, which left investor confidence rattled and triggered a wave of deleveraging across both centralized and decentralized platforms.

At press time, the Fear and Greed Index had dropped another three points to 11, its lowest level since February and indicating “Extreme Fear” among traders. Cryptocurrencies typically tend to retreat when investors are overwhelmed by uncertainty and panic, and rally when confidence returns and risk appetite improves.

Crypto prices plunged lower today as Bitcoin has formed two bearish patterns on the technical daily chart. First, it has formed a double-top pattern with the top around $124,560 and a neckline at $107,276. Historically, double tops have typically led to extended price corrections, especially when the neckline is breached with strong volume, often triggering accelerated selling pressure.

Second, it has also formed a death cross pattern, which occurs when the 50-day and 200-day Exponential Moving Averages cross downward. While it is a lagging indicator that reflects past momentum shifts, it could still mean more downside risk in the coming weeks if selling pressure persists and broader sentiment fails to stabilize.

Stablecoin reserves across exchanges shrink

Investors are also wary of weakening on-chain liquidity and diminishing buying power across the market.

Data from Nansen show that the total balance of stablecoins held across all exchanges has dropped to $85 billion, continuing its downtrend since Nov. 10, when it peaked at $89 billion. Investors see falling stablecoin balances in exchanges as a sign that market participants are exiting their positions, and hence, this could point to reduced capital available for immediate crypto purchases, dampening the chances of a short-term recovery.

Moreover, corporate treasury companies that had been actively accumulating cryptocurrencies in the first half of the year have likewise paused their acquisition strategies, as they have come under increasing pressure from the current bearish market environment to liquidate assets and safeguard their balance sheets.

Even spot Bitcoin ETFs, which had earlier drawn in over $25 billion this year, have seen over $2.5 billion in net outflows since November amid concerns surrounding U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed tariff measures. The renewed trade uncertainty has fueled fears of rising inflation, potentially delaying any interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and dampening appetite for risk assets like cryptocurrencies, and affecting crypto prices.

What’s next?

Looking ahead, investors remain in wait-and-watch mode as they anticipate key catalysts that could determine the near-term direction of both equity and crypto markets.

Notably, Nvidia, the largest chipmaker in the world, is set to release its quarterly earnings on Wednesday. The results will offer fresh insight into whether the artificial intelligence sector, on which many AI-focused cryptocurrencies are built, is continuing to grow. Positive results could lift investor sentiment and provide a much-needed boost to tech-related stocks and crypto assets.

Further, the FOMC minutes from the Federal Reserve’s Nov. 12–13 meeting will also be released on the same day. The upcoming minutes are expected to provide more clarity on the Fed’s stance ahead of the December policy meeting. 

Any signs of a dovish shift or progress toward easing could support risk assets, including cryptocurrencies, while a hawkish tone could hurt market confidence and deepen the already ongoing crypto bear market.