Bitcoin (BTC) Starts December In The Red After Crashing Over 17% In November
Bitcoin (BTC) slumped to a low of $85,595 on Monday after a wave of selling and liquidations broke through several intraday support levels. Analysts have attributed the drop to forced liquidations and large stop orders being triggered.
The flagship cryptocurrency recorded its worst November performance since 2018, ending the month down over 17%.
BlackRock Calls IBIT’s November Outflows “Completely Normal”
BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF experienced substantial outflows in November. However, the asset manager is confident in the investment vehicle’s long-term outlook. BlackRock Business Development Director Cristiano Castro stated that the company’s spot Bitcoin ETF had become one of its biggest revenue drivers and called their growth “a big surprise.” The comments come after a difficult month for IBIT, which recorded over $2.3 billion in net outflows across November. The largest withdrawals came on November 18 ($523 million) and November 14 ($463 million). Castro stated at the Blockchain Conference 2025,
“ETFs are very liquid and powerful instruments. They exist to let people allocate capital and manage cash flow. What we’ve been seeing is perfectly normal; any asset that starts to experience compression usually has this effect, especially in an instrument that is heavily controlled by retail investors.”
According to Castro, demand for IBIT speaks volumes, highlighting that the ETF’s combined US and Brazil listings came very close to $100 billion during the market peak.
Strategy Could Sell Its Bitcoin (BTC) As A Last Resort
Strategy CEO Phong Le has said the company will consider selling its Bitcoin only if its stock’s value falls below net asset value (NAV) and it loses access to fresh capital. Le stated that if
Strategy’s multiple to net asset value fell under one and funding options dried up, the company would be justified in selling its Bitcoin to protect the “Bitcoin yield per share.” However, he stressed that such a move would be a last resort and not a policy shift by the company.
“I would not want to be the company that sells Bitcoin.”
Strategy’s business model depends on raising capital when its shares trade at a premium to net asset value, and using the funds to buy Bitcoin, increasing BTC held per share. According to Le, selling a portion of Bitcoin to meet obligations is acceptable if issuing more liquidity becomes more dilutive. Le’s comments come as Strategy comes under scrutiny for its ever-expanding fixed payments tied to a suite of preferred shares introduced earlier this year. Le put Strategy’s annual obligations between $750 and $800 million, adding that the company plans to fund the payouts through equity raised at a premium to its mNAV.
“The more we pay the dividends out of all of our instruments every quarter, that’s seasoning the market to realize that even in a bear market, we’re going to pay these dividends. When we do that, they start to price up.”
Bitcoin (BTC) Price Analysis
Bitcoin (BTC) slumped to a low of $85,595 on Monday as December got off to a bearish start. The crypto market closed November with the steepest monthly decline since February, as exchange volumes plunged to $1.59 trillion, while spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $3.48 billion in net outflows. The retreat accelerated when BTC fell to $85,000, wiping out over $600 million in leveraged positions and extending losses. Trading activity on centralized exchanges has fallen by over 26%, making it the weakest performance since June.
The market’s latest selloff liquidated $564 million in long positions, with BTC accounting for $188.5 million. According to analysts, growing speculation of a rate cut by the Bank of Japan was the primary reason for the rate cut. BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes stated,
“Bitcoin dumped because BOJ put Dec rate hike in play.”
BTC failed to break above $92,000 over the weekend, instead dropping over 5% in three hours as December got underway. The price stayed between $91,000 and $92,000, consolidating as November drew to a close, before a wave of liquidations triggered a collapse. The Kobeissi Letter noted in a post on X that the drop came without any major catalyst, stating,
“Crypto’s liquidity issue: As seen countless times this year, Friday night and Sunday night often come with LARGE crypto moves. Just now, we saw Bitcoin fall -$4,000 in a matter of minutes, without ANY news at all. Why? Liquidity is thin.”
The outlet blamed the price crash on a “sudden rush of selling volume,” leading to a domino-effect selloff that was amplified by the leveraged positions being liquidated.
“This crypto ‘bear market’ is still structural in nature. We do NOT view this as a fundamental decline.”
BTC started the previous weekend in bearish territory, dropping to a low of $80,524 on Friday before rebounding and settling at $85,068. Sellers retained control on Saturday as the price fell 0.45% to $84,684. Despite the overwhelming selling pressure, BTC recovered on Sunday, rising 2.51% to reclaim $85,000 and end the weekend at $86,808. The price continued pushing higher on Monday, rising 1.68% to $88,266. However, selling pressure returned on Tuesday as BTC fell 1.07% to $87,325. Bullish sentiment returned on Wednesday as the price rose nearly 4% to reclaim $90,000 and settle at $90,468.
Source: TradingView
Buyers retained control on Thursday as BTC rose nearly 1% to $91,316. The price reached an intraday high of $93,161 on Friday but lost momentum, settling at $90,902, ultimately dropping 0.45%. Price action remained bearish over the weekend as BTC fell marginally on Saturday before dropping 0.50% on Sunday and settling at $90,369. Selling pressure has intensified on Monday, with BTC down nearly 5% at $86,279.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.