Bitcoin (BTC) Market Correction: Why Is BTC Dropping Lately?

The Bitcoin (BTC) market is going through a phase of turbulence, marked by a notable decline after flirting with 99,000 dollars.

Bitcoin’s price dropped below $97,000 on Monday evening as a record institutional demand for crypto ETFs signaled a growing wariness in the markets.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency fell 2.2% over the past 24 hours to $96,611 by 21:08 ET (02:08 GMT). BTC had earlier dropped as low as $96,305.4.

Bitcoin was last seen trading at a peak of $98,984 on Friday, before staging a last-minute about-turn that saw it close the session largely unchanged.

But the world’s largest crypto had clocked a record high of $99,288 earlier in the day, as traders reacted positively to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval for the first COVID-19 pill.

Institutions’ role in crypto

This volatility was now seen as being driven, at least in part, by institutional investors, who booked profits at regular intervals.

While demand for Bitcoin ETFs hit record levels, these moves signaled a growing wariness in the markets.

Moreover, world economic uncertainty and upcoming heat-related decisions from the Federal Reserve were seen as adding to the volatility.

Chart technology was seen as indicating strong support for Bitcoin in the region of $90,000 and $85,000.

These levels were now seen as critical in the event of a sustained correction, where breaches could lead to material downside pressure on BTC, and, by extension, the wider crypto market.

Later in the session, other cryptocurrencies were seen as trading mixed.

World no. 2 crypto Ethereum rose 1.2% to $3,260. Among other top performers, XRP fell 1.1% to $0.86, while Dogecoin dropped 2.2% to $0.26.

Among gainers, Solana rose 2.3% to $224.62, Litecoin gained 1.2% to $270.04, while Polygon was up 1.3% at $3.16.