Bitcoin Steadies Near $81,000 Amid AI Stock Rout

Week ahead

Markets

Bitcoin ended the week near $80,744, down 0.4%, while Ether closed at $2,356, also down 0.4%. Both briefly rallied to a weekly high near $84,600 on Wednesday after SpaceX's Q3 earnings beat lifted broader markets, before AI-stock weakness and US Middle East evacuations triggered a slide below $80,000 over the weekend. The move wiped out leveraged positions, with crypto longs losing $404 million in four hours as Bitcoin briefly dipped under that level. Rising oil prices added to the risk-off tone, with Brent crude hitting its highest level since March as tensions escalated. The total crypto market capitalisation fell 1.3% to $2.70 trillion, with Bitcoin dominance at 60.1% as traders rotated into Bitcoin while altcoins and DeFi tokens led declines. The Fear and Greed Index sits at 45, in neutral territory, reflecting the indecision.

Movers

Top 50 coins by market cap, stablecoins excluded.

Among the week's biggest movers, MemeCore (+22.6%), Venice Token (+16.8%) and Ethena (+13.9%) led gains, while Morpho (-9.0%), Hedera (-8.0%) and Aave (-7.3%) posted the sharpest losses.

ETFs & institutional

Bitcoin ETFs swung sharply over the week: three-day inflows topped $1 billion before a $636 million outflow pushed October back into the red, and flows then snapped a two-week losing streak despite a late-week slide. Ether ETFs saw continued outflows, passing $1 billion for October, though they briefly snapped a five-day outflow streak. Elsewhere, Franklin Templeton added $150 million in fund shares to the XRP Ledger, Standard Chartered agreed to acquire custodian Zodia Custody, and Switzerland approved its first spot Bitcoin ETF for retail investors, targeting a November launch.

Regulation & policy

The OCC finalised GENIUS Act rules for stablecoin issuers and custody ahead of a January deadline, though the American Bankers Association said the rules undermine Congress. The SEC flagged tokenization as a high-risk area for 2027 market examinations, while Wells Fargo, Cisco, Intuit and other firms objected to OKX-ICE's tokenized stock listings. UK banks faced roughly 10,000 complaints in three months over blocked crypto transfers.

Stablecoins

Stablecoin market capitalisation slipped 0.7% to $280.5 billion, with USDT at $182.4 billion and USDC at $71.6 billion. HSBC launched its first stablecoin, a Hong Kong dollar token, to more than 3 million retail wallets, while Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand's central banks expanded a cross-border stablecoin initiative involving Ripple, Visa and Mastercard.

What we’re watching

Markets head into the Federal Reserve's rate decision on Wednesday and the US employment cost index on Friday, both due during a week of elevated Bitcoin volatility. Traders will also watch whether ETF flows stabilise after last week's swings between inflows and outflows.

For information only. Not investment advice, an offer or a solicitation to buy or sell any asset. Prices are approximate as of the date above.

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