Bitcoin price decline amid regulatory uncertainty and ETF outflows, Digi Mart USA News: Bitcoin fell on Monday, extending a steep downturn from last week as a souring regulatory outlook for U.S. markets, following a Democratic sweep of Congress, dampened appetite for cryptocurrencies.
The decline pointed to a layer of institutional selling in spot exchange-traded funds.
Bitcoin fell 1.9% to $74,392.2 by 01:19 ET (06:19 GMT). The world’s largest cryptocurrency fell 2% over the past week as initial optimism over the Democratic victory gave way to growing questions about the regulatory outlook.
Bitcoin’s losses, which headlined a broader decline in crypto, were driven chiefly by fears of increased regulatory oversight under a Democrat-led Congress. Several Democrats have already expressed skepticism toward crypto and have called for tighter anti-money laundering and risk management rules in the industry.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, one of the most vocal anti-crypto voices among Senate Democrats, is now reported to be in line to lead the powerful Senate Banking Committee, which would give her broad authority over the financial industry. Such an appointment could herald more scrutiny of crypto.
The Democratic congressional win also raised questions about further pro-crypto legislation, given that the crypto acts passed over the past two years were largely Republican-backed.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs suffered their worst weekly outflows since June last week, as institutional investors sold amid increased regulatory scrutiny. Spot ETFs recorded a $1.28 billion outflow last week, their second straight week of outflows and their worst since late June, according to data from SoSoValue.
The outflows left crypto largely unable to participate in a rebound in broader financial markets, particularly technology stocks. Prices across the broader crypto market fell, extending declines from the previous week.
Ether, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, fell 5.2% to $2,118.0, while XRP slid 6.4% and was on the cusp of falling below $1. Solana and Cardano each fell 3%, while BNB fell 2.4%.
Among memecoins, Dogecoin fell 3.3%, while $TRUMP fell 3.3% but remained above record lows hit last week.
