Bitcoin Drops Below $78,000 As Warsh Comments Rattle Crypto Market

Over the past 24 hours, Bitcoin was down 2.5%, while Ethereum fell 1.9% to trade at $2,430. Among major altcoins, BNB, XRP, Solana, Hyperliquid, Dogecoin and Cardano declined by up to 4.2%, while Tron gained. The global crypto market capitalisation edged down 2.57% to $3.07 trillion, according to CoinGecko. Riya Sehgal, Research Analyst at Delta Exchange, said Bitcoin had fallen from above $81,000 earlier this week to around $77,700. Ethereum was trading near $2,440, while total crypto market capitalisation had declined from above $2.7 trillion.

"Leverage added to the selling. Around $488 million in crypto positions were liquidated, including more than $360 million in leveraged longs." Bitcoin's move below $77,000 triggered further forced selling, Sehgal said. Sehgal further said that Warsh said inflation remains above the Federal Reserve's 2% target and indicated that policy could remain restrictive if price pressures persist.

Treasury yields moved higher after the remarks, putting pressure on risk assets, including cryptocurrencies. Over the past week, Bitcoin and Ethereum were down 1.1% and 3%, respectively. Among major altcoins, BNB, XRP, Tron, Dogecoin and Cardano fell by up to 20.9%, while Solana and Hyperliquid gained 4.8% and 0.9%, respectively.

Nischal Shetty, Founder of WazirX, said crypto markets navigated a volatile but increasingly constructive week, with Bitcoin retaining leadership even as leverage was flushed out and macro uncertainty capped momentum. "Total market capitalisation fell 1.27% to $2.65 trillion on August 26, while $641.79 million in liquidations, including $489 million in long positions, highlighted the cost of crowded bullish trades. Crypto ETFs recorded $482.13 million in inflows on August 25, led by roughly $310 million into Bitcoin and $172 million into Ethereum." This support, alongside gains in US technology stocks, helped sustain a cautiously positive market structure, Shetty further said.

Analysts said elevated leverage and liquidations added to selling pressure, while crypto ETF inflows and gains in US technology stocks offered some support to the broader market. (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times.)