On crypto news today, November 18, the entire market is on edge. Bitcoin has slipped below the psychologically important $90,000 level. Whatever the extending a brutal multi-week slide from its October all-time high near $126,000. That is nearly a 30% drawdown in just a few weeks, wiping out most of 2025. Gains and dragging the rest of the crypto market down with it. Ethereum has broken below $3,000, losing roughly 40% from its recent peak. The major altcoins are bleeding even more heavily.
At the same time, the global crypto market cap has shed around 25% in roughly six weeks. When analysts estimating that about $1.2 trillion in value has evaporated since early October. Sentiment has flipped from greed to extreme fear, with on-chain and derivatives data showing aggressive liquidations. ETF outflows, a rapid shift away from risk assets. No wonder traders are asking the same questions: Why is Bitcoin price dropping? Did the 2025 bull run just die? And why did altcoins fail to pump even when Bitcoin was hitting new highs?
In this in-depth breakdown of crypto news today, we will unpack the real reasons behind Bitcoin’s drop. The look at why the supposed crypto bull run 2025 has stalled. Examine whether this is the beginning of a fresh crypto bear market. They are just another violent correction in an ongoing uptrend. We will also dig into why altcoins did not enjoy a full altcoin season. What might still be ahead for them, and how traders and investors can navigate this turbulence more intelligently.
Crypto News Today Bitcoin Slides Below Key Levels
As of November 18, Bitcoin has fallen nearly 30% from its October peak above $126,000. To the intraday lows around $90,000, its weakest level since April. Ethereum has tumbled below $3,000, erasing around 40% from its August high. They are several other large-cap coins are down 40% or more from their recent tops.
This latest Bitcoin price drop is not happening in isolation. Globally, stock markets have been selling off as investors reassess. Whenever interest rate expectations, worry about overvalued tech and AI plays, and rotate away from speculative assets. In other words, the same macro forces that pumped risk assets all year are now pulling liquidity back out. The crypto—still seen as a high-beta risk asset—is feeling the full force of that reversal.
The result is a crypto landscape where Bitcoin dominance remains relatively high. The total market has lost more than a trillion dollars in value, and social sentiment is stuck in extreme fear. Yet at the same time, on-chain data and ETF flow metrics suggest this may be as much about profit-taking and de-risking as it is about the end of a cycle.
Why Is Bitcoin Price Dropping Right Now?
There is no single magic explanation for why Bitcoin price is dropping. Instead, several powerful forces have converged at once: profit-taking after a massive rally. ETF outflows macroeconomic headwinds, and structural weaknesses in the derivatives market. Together they create the kind of cascading selloff that dominates crypto news today.
Profit-Taking After 2025’s Parabolic Rally
Before the current correction, Bitcoin had already enjoyed a huge run-up in 2025. Whenever surging to fresh all-time highs above $120,000 after the post-halving rally and spot ETF boom. Long-term holders, miners, and early institutional ETF buyers found themselves deep in profit. On-chain analytics firms report that seasoned “diamond-hand” wallets started to distribute coins back to the market once new highs were established.
This is classic market cycle behavior. In mature bull runs, old coins typically move when a new generation of investors is willing to buy at extremely high prices. As these long-term holders take profits, they remove a crucial support from the order book. Because they are leaving newer buyers to absorb supply. When prices then begin to falter, those same newer buyers quickly flip from confident HODLers. To fearful panic sellers, amplifying the downturn.
The result is a Bitcoin price correction that looks brutal on shorter timeframes, but is perfectly normal in the context of a multi-year bull market. Profit-taking alone does not define a crypto bear market, but it does create the conditions for sharper moves when other catalysts hit.
ETF Outflows And Institutional De-Risking
One of the biggest stories in crypto news today is the reversal in Bitcoin ETF flows. After months of record inflows earlier in 2025, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have flipped to heavy outflows. On November 13 alone, Bitcoin ETFs saw around $870 million leave the market. The second-worst daily outflow since they launched, with funds from giants like BlackRock and Fidelity seeing major redemptions.
These ETF outflows tell us that institutional players are de-risking. Asset managers who loaded up on Bitcoin earlier in the year are now rebalancing portfolios. Then they locking in profits, and moving capital back toward cash and bonds as interest rates stay higher for longer. That withdrawal of deep-pocketed demand weighs heavily on price, especially when it coincides with fragile retail sentiment.
What makes this more complicated is that some altcoin-focused ETFs are still attracting modest inflows despite Bitcoin’s slide. This hints that institutions are not abandoning crypto entirely; they are simply rotating and managing risk more actively. For Bitcoin, though, the net effect right now is clear downward pressure.
Macro Headwinds: Rates, Tariffs And Risk-Off Mood
The broader macro backdrop is another key driver behind why Bitcoin is dropping. Expectations around U.S. interest rate cuts have shifted significantly, with Fed officials striking a more cautious tone and the odds of an imminent cut falling. When yields on government bonds remain attractive, some investors see less reason to chase volatile assets like crypto.
At the same time, markets have been rattled by fresh geopolitical and trade worries, including threats of new tariffs that have already triggered days of selling in both equities and digital assets. Tech stocks tied to the AI boom—one of the biggest beneficiaries of the earlier risk-on environment—are now under pressure, and crypto is being swept up in the same risk-off wave.
Historically, Bitcoin has sometimes been pitched as digital gold or an inflation hedge, but in practice it still tends to trade like a high-growth tech stock. When markets collectively decide that speculative risk is out of fashion. Historically Bitcoin price drops, and the rest of crypto feels the shock.
Leverage, Liquidations And Market Structure
A major reason the recent move feels like a crash rather than a gentle pullback is the role of leverage. Derivatives data shows that over $1.1 billion in positions have been liquidated in short windows during this downturn, with hundreds of thousands of traders wiped out. In highly leveraged markets, small price dips can trigger forced selling as exchanges close out overextended positions. Those liquidations create further downward momentum, knocking out even more traders, and the feedback loop continues.
This is exactly what happened during the notorious October flash crash, when roughly $20 billion in leveraged positions was liquidated in a single day and many altcoins dropped over 40% in minutes. Structurally, this means that crypto price crashes are often less about a single catastrophic news event and more about how much leverage has built up during the preceding rally. The more degen leverage, the harder the eventual unwind.
Is The Bull Run Over Or Just Taking A Breather?
With Bitcoin back below $90,000 and the crypto market cap down sharply, it is natural to ask whether the much-hyped crypto bull run 2025 is over. Some commentators on social media are already calling for a full crypto winter, pointing to the size of the drawdown and the surge in fear.
However, a growing number of analysts and industry leaders argue that this looks more like a mid-cycle. Historically reset than the start of a multi-year bear market. Figures from large crypto firms and ETF providers emphasize that global liquidity is still broadly supportive, and that bear markets typically begin after liquidity has already tightened, not when it is expected to expand.
What On-Chain And Sentiment Data Are Saying
On-chain indicators show that while some veteran holders are taking profits, long-term conviction remains relatively strong. Supply held by illiquid wallets is still high, and there is no evidence of panic-level distribution from the very oldest cohorts. At the same time, sentiment metrics like the Crypto Fear & Greed Index have plunged into extreme fear a zone. It has historically coincided with medium-term buying opportunities rather than cycle tops.
In simple terms, that means the crypto market today is scared, but not fundamentally broken. Short-term traders are capitulating, leveraged positions are being flushed out, and ETF capital is temporarily reversing. But the underlying thesis of a long-term uptrend driven by institutional adoption, post-halving supply shocks, and global digital asset integration remains intact for many market participants.
How This Drop Fits Past Bitcoin Cycles
Looking back at previous cycles, sharp retracements of 30%–40% have often occurred in the middle of bull markets, not only at their ends. The 2017 and 2020–2021 bull runs both featured multiple Bitcoin price crashes of this magnitude before new highs were eventually set. Analysts who map 2025’s structure against those prior cycles argue that current price action resembles a classic mid-cycle shakeout.
Exacerbated by derivatives excess and macro jitters. When rather than the first leg of a prolonged crypto bear market. Of course, history never repeats perfectly, and there is no guarantee that this time will follow the same script. But structurally, the present move fits comfortably within historic bull-market volatility bands.
Why Altcoins Failed To Pump With Bitcoin
One of the biggest frustrations in crypto news today is that altcoins never really got a proper altcoin season even when Bitcoin was printing new all-time highs. Many traders expected that once BTC pushed above previous records, capital would rotate aggressively into high-beta altcoins. Instead, most alts underperformed, and they are now being hit even harder on the way down.
Bitcoin Dominance And Flight To Quality
During much of 2025, Bitcoin dominance remained elevated, reflecting a persistent flight to quality narrative. Reports from major outlets highlight that while Bitcoin gained double digits in the first half of the year, large altcoins like Ethereum and Solana were already lagging, with some down double digits even before the latest crash.
That divergence reflects a more mature market dynamic. Institutional capital flowing through ETFs and regulated products is heavily skewed to Bitcoin, which is seen as the safest, most established asset. In times of uncertainty, both professional and retail investors tend to prioritize Bitcoin over altcoins, and that preference limits the upside for smaller tokens even in bullish conditions.
Regulation, Narratives And Liquidity Rotation
Another reason altcoins failed to pump is regulatory and narrative uncertainty. Several jurisdictions have tightened scrutiny on tokens deemed securities, DeFi protocols, and privacy-focused coins. At the same time, the explosion of meme coins and low-quality projects since 2021 has led to an enormous number of dead or failing tokens, with research showing that over half of altcoins launched in recent years have effectively collapsed.
When liquidity is finite and risk appetite is falling, market participants become more selective. Capital flows toward established large caps and away from long-tail speculative names. That dynamic has kept a lid on altcoin season 2025, even as some analysts now suggest that a delayed rotation could still emerge later in the year if Bitcoin stabilizes and dominance finally rolls over.
Are We Entering A New Crypto Bear Market?
The big question driving crypto news today is simple: does this violent correction mean the bull run has failed, and are we now sliding into a deep crypto bear market?
Bear Market Checklist: Do The Signs Match?
Classic bear markets are usually defined by a combination of structural and behavioral factors: a breakdown in long-term on-chain holders, deep macro tightening, declining global liquidity, and a prolonged period of lower highs and lower lows in price. Right now, some of those ingredients are present, but not all.
Yes, prices are down sharply, leverage is being flushed, and ETF flows have turned negative. But global liquidity is not yet in full contraction mode, and key on-chain metrics still suggest that long-term believers are largely holding their ground, even if they are trimming around the edges.
This has led several high-profile industry figures, including leaders at major exchanges and crypto asset managers. When publicly push back on bear market narratives, framing the move as either a temporary pullback or the tail end of a short, shallow bear phase inside a larger structural bull.
Scenarios For The Next 3–6 Months
Over the next three to six months, the Bitcoin price and broader crypto market are likely to track three key variables. The first is macro policy, especially interest rate expectations and any escalation in tariffs or geopolitical risks. A friendlier rate outlook would ease pressure on speculative assets, while further shocks would reinforce risk-off behavior.
The second is ETF flows and institutional appetite. If outflows stabilize and reverse back into modest inflows, it would signal renewed confidence in Bitcoin as a long-term asset class. If redemptions accelerate, it would add weight to the bear market thesis.
The third is altcoin performance and dominance. A genuine altcoin season, with meaningful rotation into quality alts and a sustained drop in Bitcoin dominance. Would suggest the cycle still has legs. Persistent weakness in altcoins, on the other hand, would indicate that investors are still de-risking and preferring safety over high-beta plays.
How Traders And Investors Can Navigate This Volatility
With Bitcoin price dropping and social feeds full of fear, it is easy to make emotional decisions. Yet the same volatility dominating crypto news today can be an opportunity for those who manage risk well and match their strategy to their time horizon.
Short-Term Traders: Volatility As Opportunity
For short-term traders, this environment is all about discipline. High volatility means larger intraday ranges and frequent fake-outs, so risk management must be stricter than ever. That includes using smaller position sizes relative to account equity, clearly defined invalidation levels, and a deep respect for how quickly liquidations can occur in over-leveraged markets.
Rather than chasing every green candle, many experienced traders focus on mechanical setups: waiting for confirmed breaks and retests of key levels, monitoring funding rates and open interest to gauge crowd positioning, and being willing to sit in stablecoins when the structure looks messy. Whether one is trading Bitcoin, Ethereum, or high-beta altcoins, the principle is the same: volatility is only an edge if it is controlled.
Long-Term Investors: Risk Management Over Prediction
For long-term investors who believe in the crypto bull run story beyond 2025, the emphasis is less on predicting the exact bottom and more on managing downside risk. That may mean dollar-cost averaging rather than making all-in bets, ensuring portfolios are not overly concentrated in illiquid altcoins, and keeping a clear separation between capital for long-term holds and capital earmarked for speculative trades.
Historically, many of the best long-term returns in Bitcoin and quality altcoins have come from periods when crypto news today looked overwhelmingly bearish. However, survivors of multiple cycles tend to be those who avoided forced selling—because they did not over-leverage or allocate money they could not afford to see draw down significantly. The market will always offer another entry; capital preservation is what decides who is still here to take it. Nothing in this article is financial advice, but the pattern is clear: when fear is high and narratives are chaotic, process and risk management matter more than ever.
Conclusion
On crypto news today, November 18, Bitcoin’s drop below $90,000 and the market-wide selloff have sparked urgent questions. Why is Bitcoin price dropping? Has the bull run failed? Are we already in a crypto bear market, and why did altcoins never really pump? The reality is nuanced. Bitcoin is under pressure from a combination of profit-taking after a massive rally. The heavy ETF outflows, macroeconomic uncertainty, and a brutal flush of leveraged positions. The broader market has lost more than a trillion dollars in value, and sentiment sits at extreme fear. Altcoins, meanwhile, have suffered disproportionately because capital has favored safety, regulatory clouds hang over many tokens, and too many low-quality projects have poisoned the long tail of the market.
Yet beneath the fear, there are also signs that this could be a mid-cycle reset rather than the start of a brutal multi-year winter. Long-term holders still show conviction, global liquidity is not yet in full retreat, and analysts point out that past bull markets have endured multiple 30%–40% drawdowns before ultimately pushing higher. Whether you are a trader or a long-term investor, the key is not to guess the next headline but to build a strategy that survives whatever comes next. The question is less “Will there be another crypto bull run?” and more “Will you still have capital and emotional resilience when it arrives?”
FAQs
Q: Why is Bitcoin price dropping today?
Bitcoin price is dropping today because several bearish forces have aligned at once: large holders are taking profits after a parabolic rally, spot Bitcoin ETFs have seen heavy outflows, macro uncertainty is pushing investors into safer assets, and over-leveraged positions are being liquidated in waves. Together, these factors create a powerful downdraft that has dragged BTC below $90,000 and shaken confidence across the entire crypto market.
Q: Is this the start of a new crypto bear market?
It might feel like a new crypto bear market, but the evidence is mixed. The scale of the drawdown and surge in fear certainly fit a bearish narrative. However, on-chain data suggests many long-term holders are still committed, global liquidity has not completely dried up, and similar mid-cycle crashes have occurred in previous bull runs without ending them. Until there is a prolonged period of lower highs, weak on-chain activity, and sustained macro tightening, it is more accurate to call this a severe correction with bear-market risk rather than a confirmed long-term downtrend.
Q: Why did altcoins not pump during the recent Bitcoin rally?
Altcoins struggled to pump even as Bitcoin made new all-time highs because the market’s risk appetite has shifted. Institutional capital and cautious retail investors have focused on Bitcoin as a relative safe haven, while regulatory uncertainty, an oversupply of low-quality tokens, and lingering scars from previous altcoin crashes have reduced enthusiasm for smaller projects. As a result, Bitcoin dominance stayed high and many altcoins underperformed throughout 2025 instead of enjoying a classic altcoin season.
Q: Will there still be an altcoin season in 2025?
An altcoin season 2025 is still possible but likely delayed and more selective than past cycles. Some analysts note that altcoin dominance has historically risen weeks after Bitcoin sets a new cycle high, and recent data shows early signs of capital rotation as Bitcoin’s dominance begins to wobble. However, any future altcoin season may focus on high-quality sectors—such as infrastructure, real-world assets, and profitable DeFi protocols—rather than the broad, indiscriminate pumps of earlier years.
Q: How should I react to the current crypto crash?
The best response depends on your time horizon, risk tolerance, and overall financial situation. Short-term traders might choose to reduce leverage, tighten risk parameters, and wait for clearer structures before re-entering. Long-term investors may prefer to reassess allocations, ensure they are not overexposed to illiquid altcoins, and consider gradual accumulation rather than panic selling. Above all, avoid making decisions purely from fear. Crypto has always been volatile; surviving that volatility with a clear plan is more important than perfectly timing every top and bottom.
