Crypto Market Plunges as Global Risk-Off Sentiment Spreads

The crypto market saw a decline on Friday due to global risk-off sentiment. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization fell by 2.4% over the past 24 hours, reaching around $2.16 trillion.

Liquidations topped $335 million as Bitcoin (BTC) dropped below $63,000 and traded near $62,600 after falling more than 3% in the past 24 hours. Ethereum (ETH) also fell to around $1,856, while XRP traded near $1.06.

The sell-off was driven by macroeconomic developments rather than crypto-specific news. The Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan both left interest rates unchanged this week, reinforcing expectations that interest rates could stay elevated for longer.

This reduced appetite for risk assets like cryptocurrencies. Market sentiment worsened after reports suggested US authorities could intervene in currency markets to support the Japanese yen, leading to a sharp reversal in the S&P 500 and erasing nearly $1 trillion in market value within about 40 minutes.