Bitcoin is falling because several pressures have landed at the same time: United States spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have suffered five straight days of outflows, investors now expect the US Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in December, and the shock resignation of Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang rattled the technology shares that crypto has been trading alongside. No single event explains the drop. Together, weaker institutional demand, higher rate expectations and the forced closure of leveraged bets have pushed the world's largest cryptocurrency to its lowest level since August.

This explainer sets out how far Bitcoin has fallen, the five drivers behind the slide, why Bitcoin now moves with tech shares, and what traders are watching next. It is for information only and is not financial advice.

How far has Bitcoin fallen?

Bitcoin fell below $72,000 on Thursday, 12 November 2026, its lowest level since mid-August. According to CoinDesk's live coverage, it touched about $71,300 during the United States morning session, down around 3% in 24 hours. Cointelegraph reported that Bitcoin slid towards $71,000, its lowest level since 20 August, while The Block put the low at $71,200, a 12-week low.

The fall extends a difficult stretch for crypto. Earlier in the week Bitcoin had traded above $76,000, and it had already touched about $73,700 on Sunday, 8 November, its lowest level since August at that time. Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency, briefly fell below $2,000. The wider damage is large: the total crypto market capitalisation has fallen by roughly $550 billion since early October, according to Business News.

1. Money is leaving Bitcoin ETFs

The most concrete pressure is coming from the US spot Bitcoin ETFs, the funds that let ordinary investors and institutions buy Bitcoin through the stock market. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded about $300 million of net outflows on Wednesday, 11 November, their fifth straight day of withdrawals, bringing the five-day total to roughly $1.44 billion, according to SoSoValue data cited by Decrypt and Farside data cited by Cointelegraph.

BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), the largest of the funds, accounted for $269.7 million of Wednesday's withdrawals and has now recorded more than $2 billion in net outflows over nine straight sessions. Bitcoin Magazine reported that IBIT accounts for about 94% of November's outflows. Decrypt reported that net outflows for November so far total $1.88 billion, after $520 million left the funds in October, and that the funds' total net assets have fallen to $93.7 billion, about 45% below their October 2025 peak of $169.5 billion.

ETF flows matter because these funds were the biggest new source of Bitcoin demand since they launched in 2024. When investors redeem their ETF shares, the funds must sell the underlying Bitcoin, which adds direct selling pressure to the market. HashKey researcher Tim Sun told Decrypt that the outflows reflect institutions cutting risk and are "not yet sufficient to prove that Bitcoin's long-term allocation thesis has reversed". He also estimated the average holding cost for spot Bitcoin ETF investors at around $81,000, meaning some holders are now sitting on unrealised losses, which can itself encourage further selling.

2. Interest-rate expectations have turned against Bitcoin

The second driver is monetary policy. A stronger-than-expected report on US consumer prices earlier in the week raised fears that inflation is proving sticky, and comments from Federal Reserve officials have pointed towards tighter policy rather than looser. Cleveland Fed president Beth Hammack said policy should move to a restrictive setting, while Fed governor Christopher Waller earlier in the week left the door open to a half-point increase in December, according to CoinDesk.

The US two-year Treasury yield rose to 4.80% as traders repriced the outlook. A strong jobs report added to the shift: US employers added 165,000 jobs in October, well above forecasts, and unemployment held at 4.1%. Markets now price about a 77% chance of a Federal Reserve rate hike at the 8 to 9 December meeting, up from about 67% a week earlier, according to CME FedWatch.

Higher interest rates hurt Bitcoin in two ways. First, they make holding assets that pay no income, such as Bitcoin, relatively less attractive when cash and bonds pay more. Second, they tend to strengthen the dollar, and Bitcoin, like gold and oil, is priced in dollars, so a stronger dollar makes it more expensive for buyers using other currencies.

3. The Nvidia shock rattled tech shares and crypto together

The immediate trigger for Thursday's risk-off mood came from the chip industry. Nvidia said Jensen Huang had stepped down as chief executive and left the board with immediate effect, after 33 years running the company he co-founded, following a board investigation into his personal conduct and alleged links to a suspected Chinese intelligence operative. Nvidia's shares fell sharply, and the wider technology sector slid with them.

Why does a chipmaker matter to Bitcoin? Over the past two years crypto has tended to trade alongside large technology and AI shares, as both attract the same appetite for risk. When investors sell Nvidia and other AI names, they often sell Bitcoin at the same time. Nvidia is due to report quarterly results on 17 November, which traders now see as a key test for the whole AI trade.

There was a second corporate trigger on the same day: MSCI confirmed the removal of Strategy, the software company that is one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin, from its indexes, and Strategy's shares slid. That added to the sense that the institutional bid for crypto-linked assets is weakening.

4. Forced selling made the fall faster

Once prices started falling, leveraged trading made the move sharper. The Block reported that about $750 million in crypto positions were liquidated as Bitcoin touched $71,200. Coinglass data showed more than $656 million of leveraged crypto positions liquidated in 24 hours, about $555 million of them long positions betting on higher prices.

Liquidation works like a cascade. Traders who borrow money to bet on rising prices must post collateral. When the price falls far enough, exchanges close their positions automatically and sell the underlying asset, which pushes the price lower and triggers more closures. That is why Bitcoin can fall several percent in a single session even when the underlying news has not changed that much: the selling feeds on itself until the leveraged positions are cleared out.

5. Politics: the US midterms and regulation worries

Politics is the fifth factor. Reuters attributed part of the new wave of cryptocurrency declines to the results of the US midterm elections, in which Democrats won control of both houses of Congress, fuelling investor concerns about a more stringent approach to regulating the industry. Analysts also point to a major Binance security breach as one of the triggers for institutional risk-off selling in November.

Regulation matters to Bitcoin because the price depends heavily on how easily institutions can buy and hold it. Tighter rules, or even the expectation of them, can discourage pension funds, banks and asset managers from adding crypto exposure. The uncertainty is not new, but it arrived in the same week as the ETF outflows and the rate repricing, which amplified its effect.

Why does Bitcoin fall when tech shares fall?

Bitcoin was once described as "digital gold", an asset that would hold its value when other markets fell. In practice, it has behaved much more like a high-risk technology share. The reason is who owns it and why. The same funds that buy Nvidia, AI stocks and growth shares also buy Bitcoin, and they tend to sell all of them together when risk appetite fades. When the Federal Reserve signals higher rates, the discount rate applied to all future earnings rises, which hits growth stocks and Bitcoin alike. And because Bitcoin trades around the clock with no circuit breakers, it often moves first and fastest when sentiment turns.

That correlation is not fixed. There have been periods when Bitcoin has risen while shares fell, and its supporters argue that its fixed supply of 21 million coins makes it a long-term hedge against currency debasement. But in November 2026, the correlation with tech has been the dominant pattern, and the Nvidia resignation was a reminder of how tightly the two markets are now linked.

What would need to change for Bitcoin to recover?

Traders are watching four things. First, ETF flows: a return to net inflows, especially into BlackRock's IBIT, would signal that institutional demand is stabilising. Continued daily outflows would signal the opposite. Second, the Federal Reserve: the 8 to 9 December meeting is the next big test, and any softening in officials' language could ease the rate pressure. Third, Nvidia's earnings on 17 November, which could either calm or deepen the tech sell-off. And fourth, price levels: analysts warn that a failure to regain key levels could lead to deeper declines towards $65,000, while a recovery above the $75,000 to $76,000 area would suggest the selling has run its course.

None of those signals is certain, and Bitcoin has a long history of sharp falls followed by sharp recoveries. What is clear is that the November fall is not a mystery and not the result of a single headline. It is the combined effect of investors pulling money from ETFs, a Federal Reserve that looks more likely to raise rates than cut them, a shock at the world's most valuable chipmaker, forced selling of leveraged bets, and political uncertainty about regulation.

Key facts: Bitcoin's November 2026 fall

Frequently asked questions

How low has Bitcoin fallen in November 2026? Bitcoin fell to about $71,200 to $71,300 on Thursday, 12 November, its lowest level since August. It had traded above $76,000 earlier in the same week.

Why are Bitcoin ETFs losing money? Investors are redeeming their shares in US spot Bitcoin ETFs, with about $1.44 billion leaving over five sessions to 11 November. BlackRock's IBIT accounts for most of the outflows. When investors redeem, the funds sell the underlying Bitcoin.

What does the Federal Reserve have to do with Bitcoin? Expectations of higher US interest rates make non-yielding assets such as Bitcoin less attractive and tend to strengthen the dollar. Markets price about a 77% chance of a Fed rate hike at the 8 to 9 December meeting.

Why did Nvidia's chief executive resigning affect Bitcoin? Nvidia is at the centre of the AI boom, and crypto has traded alongside large technology shares for the past two years. When Nvidia's shares fell after Jensen Huang's resignation, the same risk-off mood spread to Bitcoin.

Will Bitcoin recover? No one can predict that. Traders are watching ETF flows, the Federal Reserve's December meeting and Nvidia's earnings on 17 November. Analysts warn that failure to regain key levels could bring declines towards $65,000, while a move back above $76,000 would suggest the selling has eased.

Sources: SourcedBlock, "Bitcoin falls below $72K as ETF outflows hit five days", 12 November 2026; CryptoGuru, "Bitcoin hits three-month low under $72,000 as Nvidia's Huang quits", 12 November 2026; CoinDesk, Cointelegraph, Decrypt, SoSoValue, Farside and The Block, as cited. This article is for information only and is not financial advice.