Key Takeaways:
- The crypto market lost over $102 billion in five hours on November 3.
- For the first time in seven months, net institutional buying dropped below the daily mined supply.
- While there is some panic in the crypto market, many analysts say Bitcoin is maturing as OGs give way to new participants.
It’s days like this that remind you the crypto market doesn’t just move in mysterious ways; it stampedes. Within a five-hour window on November 3, 2025, over $102 billion vanished from the books.
Traders were left clutching charts and analysts scrambling for explanations. Is it just another classic crypto whipsaw or the telltale heartbeat of a maturing market finding its feet? Why is crypto down today?
Macro Pressure: Powell’s Dollar Power-Up
First, the macro backdrop. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell didn’t have to say much to send shockwaves through the crypto market. While Powell confirmed the expected 0.25% October rate cut, his outlook for the rest of the year trended hawkish. When he stated that a rate cut in December was definitely not “a foregone conclusion,” risk-on assets like the crypto market wobbled.
The dollar strength spiked, US Treasury yields soared, and risk-off sentiment turned from a mood into a mandate. For crypto prices, this means stablecoins and Bitcoin lose some of their shine as hedges. Capital still flees back to the world’s safest harbors in times like these.
For the first time in seven months, institutional net buying of Bitcoin actually dropped below the daily average of new BTC hitting the market. That one metric alone (falling net buys) set off alarm bells across trading desks and Telegram groups in equal measure. As Capriole founder Charles Edwards commented:
“Won’t lie, this was the main metric keeping me bullish the last months while every other asset outperformed Bitcoin. The trend could flip tomorrow, next week, or in 2 years. But right now we have 188 treasury companies carrying heavy bags with no business model and a lot less interested institutional buyers than before.”
OG Whales: Selling Moves from Whisper to Roar
But macro can only explain so much about why crypto prices are down. The real fireworks in the crypto market came courtesy of the whales.
Data from CoinBureau revealed long-term holders (so-called OGs) shed north of $33 billion in Bitcoin throughout October. That’s an average of over $1 billion per day in selling pressure on Bitcoin and crypto prices. And it’s enough to turn the market red for October and make November look like a continuation of the selloff.
Why are the OGs making moves? For some, it’s about portfolio rotation, securing profits, and sidestepping volatility. Others are shifting into more convenient wrappers like spot Bitcoin ETFs for better security and access to private bank loans.
Options desks have seen increased activity from these large holders writing calls. Sometimes, they’re selling a little, but mostly aiming for income and downside protection.
Hunter Horsley, CEO of Bitwise, commented,
“I think the rotation is mostly some people psychologically derisking.”
Panic and Maturity in the Crypto Market
To the casual observer, the crypto market losing $102 billion in five hours looks like classic capitulation. But some analysts see the glass half full and argue this is what a maturing market looks like.
Jordi Visser of Weiss Multi-Strategy says big liquidations and transfers are hallmarks of Bitcoin preparing for its “IPO moment.” In other words, major stakeholders are rotating as the crypto market becomes less about miners and early adopters and more about professional stewards and institutional players.
Others note that much of the transferred BTC isn’t being dumped outright. It’s collateral for loans, income-generating options strategies, or simply the result of whales rebalancing gigantic portfolios after enormous appreciation since 2020.
This cycle, far from being an indictment of Bitcoin’s thesis, is in some ways a signpost of market health. If whales continue to hold or rotate rather than abandoning the protocol, Bitcoin’s “debasement hedge” story remains.
The Bottom Line
Red crypto prices on November 3 aren’t a one-note panic. It’s more of a multi-layered shift where whales, macro stress, and evolutionary pains collide as the crypto market matures. Whether the next chapter sees new buyers embrace Bitcoin or see it as yesterday’s news remains to be seen. But for now, the $102 billion wipeout is less about bankruptcy and more about growing pains. Painful? Yes, but perhaps necessary for a crypto market getting older and wiser.