Bitcoin and Ethereum faced challenges towards the end of October, causing concern among major holders. Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a 1.75% drop in the last 24 hours, currently trading at $68,500. Its market cap stands at $1.35 trillion with a daily trading volume of $23 billion.
Data from IntoTheBlock shows a decrease in whale transactions, which involve at least $100,000 worth of BTC, coinciding with the drop in price. The amount fell from $67.8 billion on Oct. 29 to $21.1 billion on Nov. 2.
Ethereum (ETH), the top altcoin, mirrored Bitcoin’s performance. ETH fell by 2.2% in the past day, priced at $2,450. Its market cap is nearing $300 billion. Large Ethereum transactions also saw a decline from $8.1 billion on Oct. 29 to $2.5 billion recently.
A decrease in whale activity often signals fear, uncertainty, and doubt across the market. This trend is concerning for investors.
There are two main reasons behind this recent market downturn. Firstly, uncertainty surrounding the U.S. presidential elections, set for Nov. 5, is a key factor. Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget Research, suggested that the market is unsure about the future administration’s stance on cryptocurrencies, whether led by Donald Trump or Kamala Harris.
Another reason for the decline could be the outflows from spot BTC exchange-traded funds starting on Nov. 1. U.S.-based investment products experienced a net outflow of $54.9 million on Friday. Similarly, spot ETH ETFs saw a net outflow of $10.09 million on the same day.
These outflows came after seven consecutive days of inflows for BTC ETFs, which had received over $5 billion in October.
In other news, NFT sales dropped by 6% to $84.6 million, while Solana maintained its ranking for the second week in a row. Crypto VC funding also saw notable investments, with Kraken securing $42.5 million from Optimism and Glow Labs raising $30 million.