Bitcoin Price Plunges Below $81K Despite $1 Billion in ETF Inflows - Cryptonews.net
Bitcoin plunged below $82,000 Wednesday, hours after reaching two-week highs, as $1 billion in ETF inflows failed to sustain the rally.
The cryptocurrency initially held above $84,000 after breaching that threshold but began tumbling late Wednesday during a market-wide sell-off. By 5 a.m. ET Thursday, bitcoin had dipped below $82,000 and continued sliding to trade near $81,200. Despite a brief recovery attempt that hit resistance above $81,500, the currency eventually reached an intraday low of $80,836, trading near $81,300 at publication time.
Massive Liquidations
Bitcoin's price reversal proved catastrophic for traders betting long on the cryptocurrency. Coinglass data showed long bitcoin bets liquidated reached $135 million over the last 24 hours, a massive increase from the approximately $5 million in long bets liquidated a day earlier. Shorts liquidated topped $5 million, bringing total liquidations on bitcoin to $140 million.
Across the broader cryptocurrency economy, long bets liquidated topped $412 million, while short bets wiped out surpassed $43 million.
ETF Inflows vs. Price Action
Bitcoin's sideways price action occurred despite spot bitcoin ETFs drawing more than $1 billion in inflows over the prior three days. This followed a stretch of sustained outflows during which the cryptocurrency held barely above $80,000.
These now act as a critical 'quality filter' distinguishing genuine, spot-led breakouts from fragile, debt-fueled spikes.
Bitfinex analysts noted that Oct. 19's $526.7 million in net ETF inflows marked significant spot demand, yet prices remained range-bound between $81,724 and $83,470. They emphasized that this consolidation sits below the average ETF cohort cost basis of $84,333.
Market Conditions and Outlook
The analysts warned that macroeconomic trends could override institutional flows, noting bitcoin's strong correlation with tech stocks (0.78 correlation with Nasdaq-100). They highlighted that guidance on AI capital spending could influence whether the tech sell-off resumes before the Federal Reserve's Oct. 28 policy update.
Bitfinex identified a daily close above $84,400 alongside a second ETF inflow exceeding $300 million as the ideal setup for a genuine breakout. Conversely, they cautioned that a close above that level with funding near 9% would represent a leveraged move prone to being sold off, potentially repeating patterns observed earlier in October.
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