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Bitcoin’s latest slide has pushed prices into territory not seen so far this year, with the market briefly trading near the low $75,000 area.
Losses have piled up over recent months, leaving the asset well below its record peak and stirring fresh debate about whether the broader uptrend has stalled.
The drop did not happen in isolation, though, and the timing points to wider pressure across risk assets rather than a crypto-only shock.
Bids Cluster Below $73k
Order books show thicker buy interest clustered in a range that stretches from about $71,500 down toward $64,000. According to market feeds, that demand is visible but tentative.
When many bids sit on exchange books they can slow a fall, but they can also disappear quickly if sellers accelerate.
Liquidations have amplified the slide: forced closures of leveraged longs have been reported in the millions and such events can create short, violent drops even where fundamental demand remains.
This model shows current bitcoin price action is still sitting within historical norms at $74,000.
Bitcoin is down ~40% from its October high while U.S. equities remain near all time highs, with the S&P 500 down less than 10%. Under those conditions, a possible ~45% bitcoin… https://t.co/E8oiOKD3VE
— Joe Burnett, MSBA (@IIICapital) February 3, 2026
Nothing Out Of The Ordinary
According to Joe Burnett, vice president of Bitcoin strategy at Strive, the recent downturn still fits within patterns seen in prior market cycles.
Burnett said Bitcoin hovering around the mid-$70,000 range reflects a drawdown size that has appeared before during periods of rapid adoption and price discovery.
He added that swings of this scale tend to show up when an asset is still being priced by the market, rather than when it has settled into a stable trading range.
Tech Stocks Drag On Risk Appetite
The pullback in US tech names, particularly those tied to AI infrastructure, has been cited by several market watchers as a linked cause.
NVIDIA and Microsoft were among the bigger drags on major indices, and reports note that weak sentiment around earnings and high-cost AI build-outs has left investors more cautious.
When big growth stocks wobble, investors often trim other risky positions too, and crypto has been swept up in that flow.
Retail dip-buying was visible on some exchanges, and institutional spot purchases were reported as well.
According to Burnett, a 45% drawdown is close to historical swings, which suggests volatility like this has precedents. That view does not remove pain for traders, but it does place the drop into a longer pattern rather than labeling it terminal.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
