Bitcoin tumbled below $75,000 on Friday for the first time since mid-April, touching as low as $74,255 before recovering slightly. The drop came as a broad market selloff erased more than 3% from the top cryptocurrency in 24 hours, with Ethereum, Hyperliquid, and other major assets all in the red. The rout unfolded even as regulators push forward with the CLARITY Act, which would put crypto spot markets under CFTC oversight — a move many expected to boost sentiment.
Bitcoin’s sharpest demand drop since January
CryptoQuant head of research Julio Moreno said Bitcoin spot demand is contracting at the fastest pace since Jan. 10 — a sign that buyers aren't stepping in to catch the dip. The metric tracks how aggressively traders are accumulating coins from exchanges. When it turns negative this quickly, it usually means institutional and retail interest has evaporated, at least for now.
ETFs bleed $2 billion in two weeks
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have now recorded more than $2 billion in cumulative outflows over the past two weeks. That's a stark reversal from the inflows that helped push Bitcoin above $80,000 earlier this year. The sustained exit suggests fund managers are cutting risk rather than rebalancing — not a great sign for a near-term bounce.
Liquidations sweep the market
Derivatives markets took a beating. Within 24 hours, $941 million in positions were liquidated across all exchanges, affecting over 161,200 traders. Bitcoin-linked contracts alone accounted for more than $378 million of that total. Ethereum traders saw roughly $255 million in positions forcefully closed. The single largest wipeout hit Bitget exchange, where a $32.4 million Bitcoin swap contract was obliterated. Longs bore the brunt — around $870 million of the total, versus just $71.4 million from shorts. That tells you how many traders were betting on a continued rally.
Risk metrics flash warning
Bitcoin’s annualized Sharpe ratio has turned negative, according to Alphractal CEO Joao Wedson, indicating elevated pressure and poor return efficiency — it's basically a signal that the risk isn't paying off. Ethereum’s Sharpe ratio is hovering near zero, which Wedson describes as a neutral environment with no clear premium for taking on risk. Neither metric suggests a quick recovery is baked in.
With the CLARITY Act still moving through Congress and ETF outflows accelerating, the next few days will test whether $74,000 holds as support — or if the selloff has further to run.
