Cryptocurrency Market Suffers Largest Weekly Decline Since FTX — Should You Buy the Dip?

The cryptocurrency market experienced its steepest weekly decline since the FTX exchange collapse in November 2022, with Bitcoin falling 17.3% and Ethereum dropping 22%. The total market capitalization plummeted by approximately $390 billion, dropping just above $2 trillion, down from October’s peak of nearly $4.2 trillion. Leveraged traders faced severe losses, with $7 billion in liquidations, mostly from long positions totaling $5.7 billion. Strategy, the largest corporate Bitcoin holder, sold 32 BTC worth around $2.5 million—its first sale in nearly four years—triggering investor concerns. Exchange-traded fund withdrawals persisted, as capital rotated from crypto to AI-focused equities amid expectations of OpenAI, Anthropic, and SpaceX public offerings. Zcash suffered a 40% decline after AI researchers exposed a critical vulnerability in its privacy infrastructure. Meanwhile, Friday’s stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report fueled fears of delayed Federal Reserve interest rate cuts, pushing Treasury yields higher and causing the Nasdaq 100 to drop sharply. By Saturday, Bitcoin stabilized slightly above $60,000 and Ethereum around $1,550, though both remained near recent lows. Public sentiment hit multi-month lows, with terms like ‘dead’ and ‘finished’ trending, despite institutional engagement advancing—$20 billion in tokenized real-world assets were recorded. The market’s volatility reflects ongoing uncertainty between retail panic and long-term institutional participation.