Bitcoin (BTC) briefly tumbled below the $60,000 mark on Friday for the first time since October 2024, extending the reversal that has seen the cryptocurrency lose more than half its value since last year’s record highs.
The digital asset fell as much as 7% to $59,101 during New York trading before recovering some ground later in the session. By 22:30 GMT, Bitcoin had rebounded to $61,608.63, although it remains well below its October 2025 peak of more than $126,000 and is now trading beneath levels seen when Donald Trump returned to the White House.
The latest decline reflects a growing list of pressures weighing on the cryptocurrency market. Investors have continued withdrawing money from Bitcoin-linked exchange-traded funds while renewed geopolitical tensions have dampened appetite for speculative assets.
At the same time, questions are emerging over whether some of the industry’s largest buyers can maintain the pace of demand that helped drive the previous rally.
Particular attention has fallen on Strategy Inc., the company formerly known as MicroStrategy, after it disclosed a rare Bitcoin sale this week. The firm’s aggressive accumulation strategy became one of the defining features of the last bull market, making any change in approach closely watched by investors concerned about the sustainability of the digital asset treasury model.
Bitcoin’s struggles also highlight a broader shift in market sentiment. For years, cryptocurrencies occupied a central role in speculative investing, attracting both institutional and retail capital. Increasingly, however, that money is being redirected elsewhere.
Artificial intelligence has become Wall Street’s dominant growth theme, drawing investment that may once have flowed into digital assets. AI has effectively replaced crypto as the market’s preferred area of focus for speculative capital.
The shift is visible in trading behaviour. Retail investors are increasingly active in short-dated options and prediction markets, while within crypto itself, flows are moving into stablecoins and perpetual futures rather than Bitcoin.
The weakness was broad across digital assets. Ether fell as much as 13% to its lowest level since April 2025, while XRP, Solana, and Dogecoin all dropped more than 5%.
The selloff comes despite a political backdrop that had been expected to support the sector. The Trump administration has delivered regulatory clarity, greater institutional acceptance, and legislation that treats digital assets as a more established part of the financial system, yet these developments have coincided with continued price weakness.
Inflation concerns have also altered investor behaviour. While Bitcoin has often been promoted as a hedge against rising prices, gold has taken a larger share of that demand in recent months.
For now, Bitcoin has stabilised above its intraday lows, but the broader trend still reflects weaker demand and a market increasingly drawn towards AI-linked assets rather than digital currencies.
