Is Bitcoin’s Sharp Drop Originating from Japan? Here Are the Claims

The cryptocurrency market experienced a sharp sell-off again on December 1st. The selling wave, which partially subsided last week following the massive liquidations at the beginning of October, accelerated again as the new week began.

Bitcoin fell nearly 7% to below $84,000. Ethereum also fell 7% to below $2,800. Solana saw a nearly 8% drop in value.

The crypto market lost 17% of its value in November following forced liquidations in October, but selling pressure eased somewhat last week. However, the December 1st drop has revived downside risks.

Sean McNulty, FalconX Asia-Pacific derivatives director, noted that December is traditionally a period when risk appetite declines, and made the following assessment:

“Our biggest concern is the stalled inflows into Bitcoin ETFs and the lack of buying interest at the dip. We believe structural pressure will continue this month. The next critical support level for Bitcoin is $80,000.”

Bank of Japan’s Rate Hike Signal Pressures Risky Assets Including Bitcoin

While US stock markets started the week weakly, global macroeconomic developments are also weighing on the crypto market. Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda’s December interest rate hike signal pushed Japanese bond yields sharply higher.

CoinEx chief analyst Jeff Koh specifically highlighted the possibility of the yen carry trade unraveling:

“The rise in Japanese government bond yields has increased the likelihood of a rapid unwinding of the yen carry trade. This has historically weighed on global risk assets, including cryptocurrencies.”

Strategy, which holds a large amount of Bitcoin, made a significant announcement the same day, announcing that it had set aside $1.4 billion in reserves to cover future dividend and interest payments. This move was aimed at easing concerns that the company might be forced to sell Bitcoin.

However, the announcement didn’t fully appease the market; the company’s stock fell as much as 7.9% during the day. Strategy said the new reserve will cover the company’s dividend obligations for at least 21 months and stated that it plans to keep the reserve extended for up to two years in the future.

According to Bloomberg data, spot Bitcoin ETFs in the US saw inflows of just $70 million last week, while in the past month, there have been outflows of $4.6 billion, primarily driven by the iShares Bitcoin Trust.

*This is not investment advice.