Bitcoin fell below $90,000 on Tuesday for the first time in seven months, signaling a clear decline in risk appetite across global markets.
The cryptocurrency, known for its sensitivity to shifts in investor sentiment, has now erased all its 2025 gains. Bitcoin is down nearly 30% from its October high above $126,000. By the Asia afternoon session, it was trading 2% lower at $89,953, having already broken key technical support near $98,000 last week.
Analysts said the drop reflects growing uncertainty around future U.S. interest rate cuts as well as a broader cooling in global markets after an extended rally.
According to Joshua Chu, co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association, the selloff has been intensified by institutional investors and listed firms unwinding positions they accumulated earlier in the rally. He warned that thinning support levels and rising macroeconomic uncertainty can cause confidence to fade quickly.
Companies with large crypto exposure—including Strategy Inc, miners such as Riot Platforms and Mara Holdings, and exchange operator Coinbase—have also fallen in line with the weakening sentiment.
Stock markets across Asia saw broad declines on Tuesday, with technology shares in Japan and South Korea under particular pressure.
Ethereum has also struggled for months. The cryptocurrency has lost nearly 40% from its August peak above $4,955, and on Tuesday it slipped another 1% to $2,997.
Bitcoin’s early-year decline previously foreshadowed a wider downturn in equities in April, following new U.S. tariff announcements. That history has added to investor concerns that the current crypto slump could radiate into other asset classes.
Matthew Dibb, chief investment officer at Astronaut Capital, said overall sentiment in the crypto market remains weak following the leverage wipeout in October. He added that the next major support level lies near $75,000, a level that could be tested if market volatility continues.
