Bitcoin Crashes Below $90,000 as Fear Index Hits 10 and Market Turns Risk-Off

On 17 November 2025, Bitcoin contracting to prices under the $90,000 marked the first time in seven months that the company had fallen beneath this level, eliminating all of the gains the company had made in the same year. 

The risk-sensitive cryptocurrency has erased 2025 gains and is now down nearly 30% from a peak above $126,000 in October.

The second-largest cryptocurrency, Ether, also did not fare better, and fell by as much as 40% since its peak in August of over $4,955 to around less than $3,000. 

Analyst Perception and Market Dynamics.

The sharp decline was enhanced after the Bitcoin fell below the all-important technical level inside the mid-90,000 range, crossing its 200-day moving average, hence the traditional death cross, which in the past has been associated with additional decline.

The inflow of ETFs that supported the previous gains have slowed down, and diversified institutional investors and cryptocurrency miners, including Strategy, Riot Platforms, and Mara Holdings, have slightly sold their positions in a market-wide risk-off mood. 

Joshua Chu, a co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association, noted that macro-uncertainty, He stated,

“Are DATs really justified?” Without robust governance, risk controls, and a credible business case, these structures risk turning companies into speculative shells.

He stated the

“the risks forewarned in my earlier articles turns out to be well founded as we saw $17 Billion retail losses from the recent mNAV collapses”.

Similarly, he emphasized a 20-year Bitcoin lockup proposal in the Philippines is like stockpiling Nokia phones just because mobile connectivity seemed inevitable. Such proposals confused tech optimism with true value creation. Crypto can hedge inflation or diversify, but absent substantive ops alignment, it invites liquidity crises that crosses regulatory red lines. 

Expansive Market Purification 

Expanding financial markets have also been exhibiting signs of stress especially in technology stock in Asia under pressure. 

The Crypto Fear and Greed Index fell to 10 which indicates that the level of fear among investors is extreme enough to be the lowest since July 2022 bear market while $617 million in liquidations erased gains amid collapsing rate cut expectations.

The next support level according to analysts that Bitcoin would likely have in the case of volatility would be around the price of $75,000. 

According to market analysts, this liquidation event may be the initial step toward a lengthy crypto winter or as the cleansing mechanism before a potential rebound based on future macroeconomic changes and ETF laundering.

Future Outlook

Considering that Bitcoin is susceptible to further losses in case of macroeconomic pessimism and lack of inflows, investors should pay close attention to key areas of support. 

In case the risk sentiment does not stabilize, and the federal reserve rate decreases are delayed due to inflationary pressure, the pressure on cryptocurrencies can be trained. 

However, historic trends have shown that economic cycles of extreme fear can sometimes be followed by temporary relief rallies after the ETF flows stabilize and economic information becomes positive, which points to an extremely volatile and yet, potentially very profitable market in the future. 

This reserved but dynamic background extends to emphasize the dynamism of the cryptocurrency investing, since it is always sensitive in the global financial circumstances and investor psychology, and thus requires careful observation by market stakeholders.