Introduction
Major Friday Crypto Selloff Drags Bitcoin Under $70K
The cryptocurrency market faced a significant downturn on Friday, as Bitcoin dropped below the $70K mark. Factors such as disappointing U.S. interest rate news and a plunge in GameStop shares contributed to the negative sentiment.
Bitcoin Fails to Sustain Gains – Crypto Selloff
Bitcoin, which was challenging an all-time high earlier on Friday, pulled back significantly, losing most of its weekly gains. The broader cryptocurrency market experienced an even larger selloff as speculative fever cooled.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs Accumulation Streak
Despite the largest accumulation streak of spot Bitcoin ETFs since their launch, it wasn’t enough to sustain a rally in Bitcoin’s price. The anticipated challenge of all-time highs turned into a rapid retreat in U.S. trading.
Bitcoin Price at Press Time
At press time, Bitcoin was trading at $69,000, down 2.5% over the past 24 hours. This performance was better than the broader CoinDesk 20 Index, which declined by 5% in the same timeframe.
Performance of Major Cryptocurrencies
Among CoinDesk 20 constituents, Ether (ETH) was down 4%, Tezos (XTZ) and EOS (EOS) both fell by 10%, and Solana (SOL) dropped by 7%. Data from Coinglass indicated that the selloff resulted in $450 million in liquidations, the largest amount since a mid-April washout.
Impact of U.S. Employment Report
Bitcoin began to decline in the U.S. morning hours after a stronger-than-expected government employment report for May showed 272,000 jobs added. This dashed hopes for an imminent interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve, sending interest rates and the dollar sharply higher.
GameStop Shares Plunge
The selloff in Bitcoin and crypto intensified after Roaring Kitty’s highly anticipated YouTube livestream. The trading legend’s lack of significant announcements disappointed many, causing GameStop shares to fall further. GME shares were down 40% for the session, and the GME meme coin dropped 50% from earlier highs.
Meme Coins Suffer Losses
Other meme coins also faced declines: Dogecoin (DOGE) was down 8%, Shiba Inu (SHIB) dropped 10%, and Pepecoin (PEPE) fell 15% over the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin Bulls Left Wondering
Bitcoin bulls are left wondering what it will take for a true upside breakout. Despite the 18-day streak of spot ETF inflows, which accumulated more than 56K Bitcoins according to HODL Capital, the market struggled to maintain its momentum.
Conclusion
The crypto market’s selloff on Friday was a stark reminder of its volatility. As Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies faced significant losses, investors and analysts are left contemplating the future direction of the market.
