Bitcoin was trading at $74,584, down 1.4% in 24 hours and 4.9% over the week. Ethereum fell 4.4% to $2,137, bringing its weekly loss to 7.4%. Trading remained active, with nearly $21 billion in Bitcoin volume and about $10.5 billion in Ethereum volume.
Democratic victories in both chambers of Congress in last week’s US midterm elections have prompted concern that lawmakers could tighten cryptocurrency rules or slow legislation sought by the industry. Crypto companies spent more than $300 million backing candidates from both parties across the current and previous election cycles. President Donald Trump’s administration has taken a more accommodating approach, including lighter enforcement, a strategic Bitcoin reserve and expanded access to crypto-related financial products. Democratic lawmakers have discussed expanding Securities and Exchange Commission oversight and strengthening investor protections.
The reported October 29 Binance breach, in which about $6.34 billion in cryptocurrency was stolen, has also unsettled markets. Binance said it would cover customer losses and reopened withdrawals after suspending them temporarily. Customers then withdrew a net $4.72 billion, about 2.8% of the assets held on the platform. The FBI attributed the attack to North Korean-linked hackers; Binance said it was working with industry partners to trace and freeze the stolen assets. Santiment reported that about 28,316 BTC left Binance-associated wallets through November 5. It also measured just 0.37 positive Bitcoin comments for every negative one.
Institutional demand showed signs of weakening. US spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs recorded combined net outflows of $530.1 million on November 5: $430.2 million from Bitcoin funds and $99.9 million from Ethereum funds. Ethereum has underperformed Bitcoin during the sell-off. Its November 6 decline triggered about $210 million in liquidations, including $179 million in leveraged long positions, as its price neared $2,200.
Losses in US technology shares, particularly AI-related stocks, added pressure as investors questioned valuations and returns on infrastructure spending. Stronger-than-expected US employment data also raised expectations of a December Federal Reserve rate increase, with market pricing putting the probability near 80%. The dollar strengthened after the report, while investors awaited inflation data. Asian equities and US stock futures recovered some ground on Monday, but Bitcoin and Ethereum remained under pressure.
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