Bitcoin drops to $92,000 as market capitalisation hits $1.83 trillion — what's behind the fall?

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, declined on Thursday, 20 November. It reached a low of $92,000 amid uncertainty over a December rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. According to CoinMarketCap data, Bitcoin prices dropped 0.41% to $92,140.39 at 6:15 AM.

Bitcoin's market capitalisation stood at $1.83 trillion. Its trading volume in the last 24 hours was $80.08 billion. Meanwhile, Ether, the second-largest token, also declined on Thursday, falling 0.28% to $3,042.

Why is Bitcoin falling?

The likelihood of a December Fed rate cut fell to 32%. This prompted a decline in cryptocurrencies. The drop followed Fed minutes that suggested caution regarding inflation and the labour market, according to CoinMarketCap.

This revaluation affected risk assets. As a result, crypto markets have lost $700 billion since early November. Higher interest rates decrease Bitcoin's attractiveness as a non-yielding asset.

Meanwhile, Spot Bitcoin ETFs have experienced five consecutive days of net outflows (totalling $2.26 billion). This has led to sustained selling pressure on the cryptocurrency token.

Bitcoin has recently faced significant pressure. It fell below $90,000 for the first time in seven months on Tuesday, 18 November. The highly volatile cryptocurrency has now erased its 2025 gains. It is nearly 30% lower than its peak in October, which was over $126,000. During afternoon trading in Asia on Tuesday, the price declined by 2% to $89,953.

Ether also has been under sustained pressure, falling nearly 40% from its August peak above $4,955, and trading 1% lower at $2,997 on Tuesday.

The crypto market has struggled to stabilise following an early-October selloff that led to over $19 billion in liquidations and erased more than $1 trillion from token market value. In recent times, retail involvement and dip-buying activities have declined, especially in speculative altcoins, Bloomberg reported.

Earlier this year, Bitcoin surged close to $126,000, fueled by hopes of several Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts and increased institutional adoption. However, these narratives have stagnated, and momentum-driven buyers have pulled back. The decline is significantly impacting digital-asset treasury firms, whose valuations were based on the earlier rally, it added.

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