Bitcoin hovered around $102,000 on Friday as crypto markets struggled to maintain a rebound, weighed down by renewed caution over global stocks and a stronger dollar.
The total crypto market cap edged up 1% over the past 24 hours to $3.4 trillion, its first gain after four straight days of declines, although traders remain cautious as the move is little more than a pause in the selling.
The uptick came as investors turned away from big tech names, reversing part of this year’s artificial intelligence rally.
The Nasdaq and S&P 500 extended their losses as traders questioned whether AI’s lofty valuations – and OpenAI’s trillion-dollar funding ambitions – are sustainable. Risk aversion has spread to digital assets, where speculative appetite remains weak despite recent policy easing from the Federal Reserve.
“The market seems more catching its breath than reversing,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro. “Bitcoin is holding above its 50-week moving average for now, but intraday charts show sellers trying to regain control. Time is on the bear side unless macroeconomic sentiment improves.”
Cryptocurrency prices fell mostly lower on Friday, extending the week’s decline as traders remained risk-averse following weakness in global stocks. Bitcoin slipped 1.3% in the past 24 hours to around $102,000, while Ether fell 1.1% to $3,353, widening its weekly loss of 13%. Solana’s SOL led significant declines with a daily decline of 1.4% and a seven-day decline of 15%, while XRP fell another 4% following its recent spike in wallet activity.
Among the top altcoins, BNB and Dogecoin made small gains of around 1%, providing a brief respite after heavy selling earlier in the week. The total crypto market cap hovered around $3.4 trillion, suggesting limited dip-buying interest. Traders say sentiment remains fragile as rising U.S. dollar flows and lingering macroeconomic uncertainty continue to put pressure on risk assets.
According to Hashdex, risk aversion and uncertainty over Fed rate developments continue to put pressure on digital assets. Meanwhile, Wintermute noted that institutional liquidity has shifted to traditional markets, leaving crypto underperforming compared to other asset classes.
However, some signs of accumulation persist. Data from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode shows that “accumulator addresses” – wallets that buy and never sell – added more than 375,000 BTC over the past month.
At the same time, short-term holders take advantage of each rebound to exit at a loss, a typical pattern of late corrections.
While a fall below $100,000 could trigger another round of forced selloffs, traders say a stable macro backdrop – and a decisive turnaround in stock sentiment – would be needed to restore bullish momentum.
For now, the market remains torn between optimism about easier liquidity and the reality of a still risk-averse investment climate.
