Bitcoin is falling to fresh lows today: What’s causing the crypto decline?

Bitcoin's price has recently plummeted to a new low, dipping below $70,000 for the first time since August. Since late September, when it briefly soared to over $86,500, the cryptocurrency has been on a gradual decline. As of Friday morning, Bitcoin was trading as low as $68,070 before recovering to around $69,880. Over the past five days, Bitcoin's value has dropped almost 7%, and it remains down more than 20% since the start of 2026.

The recent decline in Bitcoin's price is attributed to a combination of factors, including inflation concerns and potential interest rate hikes, as well as a decline in tech-sector stocks. The latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) data revealed that inflation rose by 0.4% month-over-month, while the Producer Price Index (PPI) reported a year-over-year increase of 6.5%, the highest in several years.

Higher inflation expectations may lead the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in December, which could negatively impact speculative assets such as Bitcoin.

Moreover, the tech sector has experienced a significant downturn, particularly following the scandal involving former Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. Nvidia, previously the most valuable company globally by market capitalization, has seen its shares lose over 27% of their value in the past month. This tech sell-off may have contributed to the overall decline in crypto markets, as the two sectors are interconnected to some extent.

Notably, investor Anthony Pompliano claimed that investors should "relax, so you can realize that AI and bitcoin are one big trade now."

Outflows from Bitcoin funds may also be playing a role in the current decline. More than $1 billion in leveraged crypto positions were closed in recent days, potentially contributing to reduced demand and affecting Bitcoin's price. As for the future, experts suggest that several factors could influence whether Bitcoin prices recover or continue to stagnate, including the Federal Reserve's subsequent actions, Bitcoin fund performance, and upcoming Initial Public Offerings (IPOs).

According to Can-Luca Köymen, an investment strategist at Sygnum Bank, "December's quarter-point hike stays the base case." However, Bitcoin's next move may depend on ETF flows, Nvidia's results, and the upcoming Anthropic IPO.