Bitcoin's value plummeted below $84,000 following a substantial $115 billion sell-off that wiped out its weekly gains. The decrease in price was mirrored by Ethereum's ETH, which reached its lowest point against bitcoin in nearly five years amidst growing macroeconomic worries.

The sudden dip in the cryptocurrency market reversed earlier positive trends on Friday. Bitcoin saw a sharp decline to $83,800, while the CoinDesk 20 Index fell by 5.7%, led by notable losses in AVAX, NEAR, POL, UNI, and SUI. This downward trend coincided with a broader stock market decline due to disappointing economic data, impacting crypto-related stocks as well.

As hopes for a crypto rebound faded away on Friday amid a widespread market downturn erasing most of the gains from earlier in the week, Bitcoin experienced significant losses. From hovering just under $88,000 the day before, it dropped to $83,800 recently with a 3.8% decrease over 24 hours. The notable sell-off resulted in a $115 billion loss of total cryptocurrency market value.

Ethereum's ether (ETH) also faced challenges as it slid over 6%, hitting its weakest position against BTC since May 2020. Simultaneously, U.S. stock markets suffered losses due to economic concerns impacting crypto-focused stocks like MSTR and COIN significantly.

Bitcoin Plunges Below $84K after $115B Sell-Off Wipes Out Weekly Gains

Ethereum's ETH hit its weakest price against bitcoin in almost five years as macroeconomic concerns added pressure to risk assets.

• The crypto market saw a sudden downturn on Friday, erasing gains from earlier in the week. Bitcoin fell to $83,800, while the CoinDesk 20 Index declined 5.7% with AVAX, NEAR, POL, UNI and SUI leading losses.
• The drop in crypto coincided with a sell-off in U.S. stocks due to poor economic data, with crypto-focused stocks also suffering heavy losses.
• Bitcoin filled its Monday CME gap with today's drop, but continued macroeconomic woes could weigh on the broader crypto market.

The day's events were further influenced by poor economic data triggering fears of stagflation and uncertainties regarding upcoming U.S. tariffs set to be imposed soon. Despite these challenges, analysts remain cautiously optimistic about potential support levels for Bitcoin and positive developments within the digital asset space.

Bitcoin (BTC), hovering just below $88,000 a day ago, tumbled to $83,800 recently and is down 3.8% over the past 24 hours. The broad-market benchmark CoinDesk 20 Index declined 5.7%, with native cryptos Avalanche (AVAX), Polygon (POL), Near (NEAR), and Uniswap (UNI) all nursing almost 10% losses during the same period. Today's sell-off wiped out $115 billion of the total market value of cryptocurrencies, TradingView data shows.

Ethereum's ether (ETH) declined over 6% to extend its downtrend against BTC, falling to its weakest relative price to the largest cryptocurrency since May 2020. Underscoring the bearish trend, spot ETH exchange-traded funds failed to attract any net inflows since early March, while their BTC counterparts saw over $1 billion of inflows in the past two weeks, according to Farside Investors data.

The ugly crypto price action coincided with U.S. stocks selling off during the day on poor economic data, with the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index down 2% and 2.8%, respectively. Crypto-focused stocks also suffered heavy losses: Strategy (MSTR), the largest corporate BTC holder, closed the day 10% lower, while crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN) dropped 7.7%.

The February PCE inflation report, released this morning, showed a 2.5% year-over-year increase in the price index, with core inflation at 2.8%, slightly above expectations. Consumer spending showed a modest 0.4% rise, though inflation-adjusted figures indicate minimal growth, suggesting potential headwinds for economic growth. The Federal Reserve of Atlanta's GDPNow model now projects the U.S. economy to contract 2.8% in the first quarter, 0.5% adjusted for gold imports and exports, spurring stagflationary fears.

The implementation of broad-scale U.S. tariffs next week—the so-called "Liberation Day' on April 2, as the Trump administration refers to—also compounded investor concerns across markets.

CME gapfill or another leg lower?

Bitcoin has closely correlated with the Nasdaq lately, so U.S. equities rolling over for another leg down could weigh on the broader crypto market. However, on a more optimistic note, today's decline could be BTC filling the price gap at around $84,000-$85,000 between Monday's open and the previous week's close on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange futures market. Historically, BTC usually revisited similar CME gaps and a drop to $84,000 was in the cards, CoinDesk senior analyst James Van Straten noted earlier this week.

"At this stage it’s difficult to determine if we have already seen a bottom in 2025," Joel Kruger, market strategist at LMAX Group, said in a market note. Despite the on-going correction, he noted several positive trends such as crypto-friendly policies in the U.S. and more traditional financial firms entering the industry or expanding crypto offerings, which could bode well for digital assets later in the year.

"Any additional setbacks that we might see should be exceptionally well supported into the $70-75k area," he added.