Bitcoin fell below $90,000 overnight as investors sell once high-flying assets like cryptocurrencies and AI stocks.
Bitcoin fell to around $89,500 early on Tuesday.
It’s the first drop below $90,000 since April.
The world’s most popular cryptocurrency had jumped near $125,000 in early October, driven in part by enthusiasm about a pro-crypto administration in Washington.
At around 10 am. ET, bitcoin traded around $91,500, according to CoinDesk.
Companies tied to crypto have been caught in the downturn. Shares of Robinhood Markets, which have tripled this year on the strength of crypto trading, are down 21% so far in November. Crypto exchange Coinbase Global has fallen 23%.
The drop in crypto is part of a broader sell-off in global markets this month. The S&P 500 is down nearly 3%, as is Germany’s DAX, while the Nikkei in Japan is off 7%. Nvidia, the poster child for the frenzy around AI, has dropped 9%.
Investors are worrying gaps in economic data will delay or even derail Federal Reserve rate cuts just as concerns over lofty AI stock valuations have put fresh pressure on companies' stocks and bonds.
Meanwhile, a man convicted over a 2020 Twitter hack that compromised accounts of high-profile figures including former U.S. President Barack Obama has been ordered to repay 4.1 million pounds ($5.40 million) worth of Bitcoin.
Joseph James Connor, 26, pleaded guilty in the United States to charges including computer intrusion, wire fraud and extortion and was sentenced to five years in prison in 2023.
He was arrested in Spain in 2021 and extradited after the country's High Court ruled the U.S. was best placed to prosecute because the evidence and victims were there.
Britain's Crown Prosecution Service on Monday said it had obtained a civil recovery order to seize 42 Bitcoin and other crypto assets linked to the scam, which involved using hijacked accounts to solicit digital currency and threaten celebrities.
"We were able to use the full force of the powers available to us to ensure that even when someone is not convicted in the UK, we are still able to ensure they do not benefit from their criminality," prosecutor Adrian Foster said in a statement.
The order, made last week, follows a property freezing order secured during extradition proceedings. The assets will be liquidated by a court-appointed trustee, prosecutors said.
