BTC Slides Below $100K, Balancer Exploited for $128M, Ripple’s Big Announcements: Weekly Crypto Recap

The total crypto market cap has plunged by $350 billion since last Friday.

For the first time since June this year, the primary cryptocurrency dipped below $100,000 (on a couple of occasions, in fact) this week, which is quite surprising given the overall positive developments on a macro and industry front.

For instance, just last week, the US Federal Reserve cut the interest rates by another 25 bps, which is typically regarded as a bullish move for risk-on assets. A day later, Washington and Beijing made significant progress in their trade war, which was followed by a trade deal.

And yet, neither of those benefited BTC. Just the opposite, its correction started after the two announcements with a price dip to $106,500 last Thursday. Nevertheless, the asset bounced by the weekend and stood mostly at around $111,000. The worst, though, was yet to take place.

As the new business week began, bitcoin went on another downfall and dropped to $105,000 on Monday. Its correction intensified on Tuesday, and it plunged below $100,000 for the first time in nearly five months. Its bottom, at the time, came at $99,000.

The bulls tried to intercept the move and help the asset recover. They were successful at first as BTC quickly rebounded to over $104,000. However, this was a short-lived rally that was halted in its tracks. Earlier today, the cryptocurrency dipped below $100,000 once again and now fights to stay above that crucial level.

Even more painful weekly declines come from the likes of ETH, which dumped to $3,200, XRP, which is close to breaking below $2.20, BNB, SOL, DOGE, ADA, LINK, BCH, and many others. In contrast, ZEC and ICP have stolen the show with price pumps of 73% and 163%, respectively.

Market Data

Market Cap: $3.430T | 24H Vol: $198B | BTC Dominance: 58.2%

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BTC: $100,160 (-8.6%) | ETH: $3,230 (-15.7%) | XRP: $2.19 (-12.7%)

This Week’s Crypto Headlines You Can’t Miss

All the Bullish Narratives Are Still There: So Why Is Bitcoin (BTC) Breaking Down? As mentioned above, the bullish narratives and developments continue in the cryptocurrency markets, but the ongoing correction is quite painful. However, analysts outlined some of the reasons behind the current crash, which include weak sentiment and deteriorating fundamentals.

OG DeFi Giant Balancer Exploited for $128M: Forks Are Now Bleeding Out Too. One of the oldest and largest names in the DeFi sphere, Balancer, was hit with a massive $128 million hack this week. According to industry experts, the culprit for the painful exploit was a faulty smart contract check.

Ethereum Traders Just Flipped Bullish, But History Says This Is a Major Red Flag. Following ETH’s bounce from under $3,200 to $3,500, investors turned bullish on social media, which is typically a bearish sign, according to data from Santiment. Interestingly, the asset indeed tumbled in the following days to $3,200 as of press time.

Arthur Hayes Ties Next Bitcoin Rally to End of U.S. Government Shutdown. When it comes down to BTC’s correction to under $100,000, market observers and commentators speculate that the main reason is the economic uncertainty in the US due to the government shutdown, which set a new record earlier this week. Arthur Hayes believes that once that is resolved, BTC will be ready to rip. Interestingly, Raoul Pal had a somewhat similar idea, but he also included the end of QT.

After Pardoning CZ, Trump Insists He Doesn’t Know the Man. Last week, the POTUS pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, who spent four months in prison and had to pay a $50 million penalty in 2024. In an interview conducted just days after the pardoning, Trump said he didn’t even know the man and admitted that his sons were behind the decision.

Brad Garlinghouse: Here’s Ripple’s Valuation Post–$500M Capital Injection. Ripple had a big week, which included a $500 million funding round led by Pantera Capital, Citadel Securities, and other big names. It put the company’s valuation at a whopping $40 billion, said CEO Garlinghouse. Additionally, the firm acquired a digital asset wallet and custody provider called Palisade.