Bitcoin News Today: Whale Selling and Retail Buying Create Crypto Tug-of-War as Bitcoin Tumbles Below $100K

Bitcoin Crashed Below $100,000 for the first time since June 23, 2025, triggering over $1.3 billion in liquidations across crypto markets as traders scrambled to cut losses amid a broad selloff, according to CoinDesk. The price of the world's largest cryptocurrency plummeted to an intraday low of $99,955 on November 4, according to data from Coinglass, while Ethereum (ETH) fell below $3,400, erasing its year-to-date gains, according to Yahoo Finance. The collapse sent shockwaves through the market, with altcoins like Solana (SOL), BNB, and XRP also plunging 7%–10%.

The liquidations were fueled by a combination of leveraged traders' forced exits and whale dumping. Over 303,000 positions were liquidated in 24 hours, with $1.1 billion tied to long positions as Bitcoin and Ethereum broke critical support levels, according to FXStreet. According to TradingView, Ethereum liquidations hit $112.8M. On-chain analytics firm Santiment noted that large holders—wallets holding 10–10,000 BTC—had offloaded 38,366 BTC since October 12, signaling growing bearish pressure. Meanwhile, retail traders continued to buy the dips, accumulating 415 BTC in the same period, though analysts caution that sustained recovery will require a reversal of whale behavior.

The selloff intensified fears of a deeper bear market. The Fear & Greed Index, a widely followed sentiment indicator, dropped to 21—the lowest since early April—reflecting "extreme fear" among investors. Bitcoin's price action also raised concerns about a potential breakdown toward the $92,000 level, where a gap in the CME futures market remains unfilled; intraday support near $107,000 briefly failed, according to Coindoo. "Markets rise when key stakeholders accumulate the coins that small wallets shed," Santiment observed, highlighting the precarious balance between institutional selling and retail resilience.

The turmoil coincided with heightened geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty. U.S. Treasury comments on NVIDIA and Donald Trump's calls to end the government shutdown added to market jitters. Additionally, rumors of a potential lawsuit by market maker Wintermute against Binance briefly exacerbated volatility before being debunked by both parties, Coinpedia reported.

Despite the bloodbath, some traders remained optimistic about a rebound. A key Bitcoin "OG" reopened $37 million in BTC and $18 million in ETH long positions on Hyperliquid, betting on a eventual recovery. However, with the total crypto market cap falling below $3.6 trillion and Bitcoin whales continuing to offload holdings, a Coinpedia analysis warned that the path to stability remains uncertain.