The cryptocurrency market has recently experienced a significant dip in sentiment, plummeting into a state of “extreme fear.” The price of Bitcoin briefly fell below $56,000, prompting speculation that it could decline further. Arthur Hayes, a notable figure in the industry and co-founder of BitMEX, suggests that Bitcoin may drop an additional 12%, potentially resting below $50,000 over the weekend.
The Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which gauges market sentiment on a scale of 0 to 100, registered a score of 22 on September 6, indicating extreme fear. This marks a notable decline from the previous day’s score of 29, which reflected general anxiety but not extreme caution. This is also the first time since mid-August that the index has returned to the extreme fear threshold, highlighting the growing unease among investors.
In the last 24 hours, Bitcoin (BTC) has decreased by approximately 2.7%, reaching a low point of $55,838 before rebounding slightly to around $56,533. The recent bearish momentum has erased nearly $29.7 billion from Bitcoin ’s market capitalization, demonstrating the volatility currently impacting the cryptocurrency landscape.
External economic factors are contributing to Bitcoin ’s lack of upward momentum, including disappointing job data from the U.S. released on September 5, which fell short of expectations. This has intensified concerns regarding potential Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and their implications for the economy.
This decline in Bitcoin ’s price has had a ripple effect across the market, impacting other major cryptocurrencies. Ether (ETH) has seen a 2.23% decrease, Solana (SOL) dropped by 2.82%, and XRP experienced a slump of 2.19%. In total, market liquidations exceeded $94 million, primarily affecting traders who had placed long bets on Bitcoin , indicating a bearish sentiment among investors. Notably, long positions in Bitcoin accounted for nearly 40% of the total liquidations.
