Bitcoin crashes below $60k as ETFs bleed and Saylor starts selling

Bitcoin has just endured one of its ugliest weeks of the year, sliding from above $70,000 to briefly under $60,000. The move has rattled traders, triggered fresh macro worries, and turned one of Bitcoin’s loudest champions into the community’s villain of the week.

Here’s what actually happened, why Michael Saylor’s tiny Bitcoin sale caused such a stir, how macro data and a Zcash bug poured fuel on the fire, and what the technicals are hinting at next.

From $73k to below $60k: how the week unraveled

At the start of the week, Bitcoin was still hovering around the $73,000 area, not far from its all-time highs. But the tone shifted quickly. BTC began to drift lower, breaking $70k and then slicing through one support level after another: $69k, $68k, $67k, $66k, and eventually down through $63k, $62k, $61k, and finally $60k.

What made this drop especially painful was the contrast with traditional markets. While Bitcoin and the rest of crypto were in freefall, the S&P 500 kept printing new highs and was on track for one of its longest green streaks since the 1980s. Risk was being rewarded in stocks, but not in crypto.

Several forces combined to drive the sell-off:

• Relentless spot Bitcoin ETF outflows
• Stronger-than-expected US jobs data
• Rising expectations of interest rate hikes instead of cuts
• A critical vulnerability in Zcash that spooked the market
• And, symbolically, Michael Saylor’s first Bitcoin sale in years

If you want a broader context on this move and how it compares to previous corrections, it’s worth reading our deeper dive on whether this is a crash, correction, or opportunity in Bitcoin dropping to $60k.

ETF outflows: the quiet but powerful headwind

One of the biggest drivers of the move lower has been sustained selling from US spot Bitcoin ETFs. By midweek, the market had logged a 12-day streak of net outflows, one of the longest since the ETFs launched.

When these products were first approved, they acted as a powerful demand engine for BTC, soaking up coins from the market and helping push prices higher. The reverse is now true: when they bleed assets, they become a persistent source of sell pressure.

In a strong bull trend, the market can often absorb that supply. But with sentiment already fragile and macro data turning against risk assets, the ETF outflows hit much harder than they might have a few months ago.

Macro shock: strong jobs, sticky inflation, and rate hike fears

Macro data added another layer of stress. The US ADP private payrolls report came in stronger than expected, and the official non-farm payrolls (NFP) number later in the week delivered a big upside surprise as well.

On the surface, strong jobs data is good news. But for markets, it raises a problem: if the economy is running hot, the Federal Reserve has less reason to cut interest rates—and may even need to hike again to keep inflation under control.

At the start of the year, traders were pricing in multiple rate cuts. Now, expectations have flipped towards the possibility of at least one rate hike before year-end. That shift has:

• Pushed bond prices lower and yields higher
• Shaken high-valuation growth stocks
• And hit crypto, which is highly sensitive to liquidity conditions

Later this week, the US CPI (consumer inflation) and PPI (producer inflation) prints will be critical. A hotter-than-expected CPI would likely cement rate hike expectations and could pressure Bitcoin further. A softer print, on the other hand, might give markets some breathing room and spark a relief rally.

Zcash bug: how an AI-found exploit spooked the market

As if the macro backdrop and ETF outflows weren’t enough, privacy coin Zcash (ZEC) dropped around 27% after a critical vulnerability was disclosed.

The bug affected Zcash’s Orchard shielded pool and had apparently been present since 2022. It was discovered not by a casual user, but by a professional auditor using an advanced AI model to analyze the code. The vulnerability has been patched, and there is no public evidence that it was exploited to mint fake ZEC—but because Zcash transactions are private by design, it’s impossible to be absolutely certain.

The episode raised uncomfortable questions:

• How many other zero-day bugs might be lurking in major crypto codebases?
• Will AI tools uncover more of these issues, and how will markets react each time?
• What does this mean for trust in privacy coins and complex protocols?

Full credit goes to the Zcash team for moving quickly to fix the issue, but the uncertainty still weighed on sentiment. For a closer look at how that exploit tied into the broader sell-off, see our coverage of Bitcoin dipping below $62k as the Zcash exploit hit the news.

Michael Saylor sells 32 BTC: why such a small sale mattered

No single story captured crypto’s mood more than Michael Saylor’s decision to sell a tiny portion of his company’s Bitcoin holdings.

The numbers themselves were trivial:

• 32 BTC sold, raising around $2.5 million
• Roughly 0.004% of the company’s total Bitcoin stack
• First sale since late 2022

For most companies, this would barely register. But Saylor has built his entire public persona on the mantra “never sell your Bitcoin.” He turned his firm into the largest corporate holder of BTC and became one of the asset’s most visible evangelists.

So when his company sold—even a tiny amount—it felt like a psychological break. Many in the community saw it as a betrayal of that “never sell” narrative, especially given how fragile sentiment already was.

Inside STRC: the preferred stock at the heart of the drama

The sale wasn’t random. The company stated that the proceeds were “expected to fund distributions on preferred stock,” referring to its STRC perpetual preferred shares.

Here’s how that structure works in simple terms:

• STRC is a perpetual preferred stock paying about 11.5% annually.
• Its “par” value is $100, and in theory it should trade near that level.
• When STRC trades at or above $100, the company can issue new shares via an at-the-market (ATM) program, raising cash to buy more Bitcoin.
• When STRC trades below $100, that issuance engine slows or stalls, but the dividend obligations keep growing as more shares exist.

The bear-case fear looks like this:

• STRC trades below par, so issuing new shares becomes harder.
• The company still owes a large, growing dividend on outstanding STRC.
• If cash runs tight, it may need to sell Bitcoin to cover those payments.
• Bitcoin selling pressures BTC price, which can hurt the equity and preferred stock further, creating a negative feedback loop.

This kind of structure can work brilliantly when Bitcoin is going up and capital is easy. But in a choppy or bearish environment, it can start to resemble the kind of reflexive “flywheel” that works until it doesn’t—something crypto has seen before with other complex financial engineering.

To make matters worse, the company recently used a big chunk of its cash pile to buy back some convertible bonds that weren’t due until 2029. Critics argue that this left less cash available to comfortably cover STRC dividends, increasing the odds that BTC might need to be sold in a downturn.

Bull vs bear: how to read the Saylor situation

The community has split into two broad camps on what Saylor’s move means.

The bull case: noise, not narrative change

The optimistic view is straightforward:

• 32 BTC is negligible compared to the company’s total holdings.
• The sale was purely to fund a specific preferred stock obligation.
• The core thesis—using corporate capital structure to accumulate Bitcoin—remains intact.
• In fact, shortly after the sale, the company announced it had bought another 1,550 BTC for around $101 million, far more than it sold.

Under this view, the outrage is mostly emotional. The fundamentals of the strategy haven’t changed, and the company is still a net buyer of Bitcoin over any meaningful timeframe.

The bear case: the first crack in “never sell”

The more skeptical view focuses less on the size of the sale and more on what it represents:

• The first sale breaks the psychological commitment to “never sell.” Once that line is crossed, future sales become easier.
• The capital structure is getting increasingly complex, with multiple layers of preferred stock and debt.
• The whole model depends on Bitcoin going up and capital markets staying open. If either falters, pressure to sell BTC to meet obligations rises.
• By selling during a period of already weak sentiment, the company arguably worsened the market mood at the worst possible time.

Even those who still believe the company will ultimately be fine worry that the structure is now more fragile than it needs to be—and that the days of a “pure” never-sell narrative are over.

Technical analysis: oversold, but is it the bottom?

On the technical side, Bitcoin is flashing a mix of potential bottoming signals and serious risks.

Key moving averages and long-term levels

On the weekly chart, Bitcoin briefly broke below its 200-week simple moving average (SMA), a level that has historically acted as a key support in bear markets. The good news: BTC managed to close the week back above this line, keeping that long-term support intact—for now.

On the daily chart, price has:

• Rejected from the 200-day EMA
• Fallen sharply below the 50-day EMA

That kind of move often leads to a retest of the broken 50-day EMA from below, turning former support into resistance. If BTC can reclaim that level, it would be an early sign that the worst may be over. If it fails, more downside is possible.

RSI: extreme oversold conditions

The daily Relative Strength Index (RSI) for Bitcoin recently hit its lowest level since the March 2020 crash. Back then, that extreme oversold reading preceded a roughly 1,000% rally over the following months. History doesn’t repeat exactly, but it often rhymes.

For Ethereum, the picture is even more extreme: its daily RSI is at the lowest level on record, making it, by this measure, the most oversold it has ever been.

Oversold doesn’t guarantee an immediate bounce, but it does suggest that a lot of selling has already happened and that the risk-reward for fresh shorts is getting worse.

Market structure: bear flag risk and potential long setups

On lower timeframes, Bitcoin’s price action resembles a bear flag—a consolidation pattern after a sharp drop that sometimes resolves with another leg down. The measured move from this pattern points to a possible target around $48,000 if it breaks lower.

At the same time, volume profile tools show that BTC is trading near the “value area low” of its recent range. That’s an area where, historically, buyers have stepped in. Traders using tools like fixed range volume profiles and indicators such as Market Cipher are watching for:

• Signs of a bullish divergence (price making lower lows while momentum makes higher lows)
• Money flow turning from negative back towards positive on higher timeframes
• Trigger waves or other confirmation signals before committing to larger long positions

In short: the market is deeply oversold and sitting on or near important long-term levels, but the confirmation of a durable bottom may still take time. There’s also a non-trivial risk of one more “flush” lower before a proper reversal.

What to watch in the days ahead

The next few days are packed with events that could set the tone for the rest of the month:

• US CPI (inflation): A hotter print would likely strengthen the case for rate hikes and pressure risk assets. A softer print could spark a relief rally.
• US PPI: Confirms whether any CPI surprise is a one-off or part of a trend in producer-level inflation.
• ETF flows: If the outflow streak finally ends or reverses, that could ease some of the structural sell pressure on BTC.
• Geopolitics: Renewed tensions in the Middle East and volatility in Asian equity markets (like Korea’s KOSPI) can spill over into global risk sentiment.
• SpaceX IPO pricing: While more relevant to equities, a successful listing and fast inclusion into major indices could influence risk appetite and liquidity across markets.

How to think about this move as an investor

For long-term Bitcoin holders, this kind of drawdown is emotionally brutal but not unprecedented. The key questions to ask are:

• Has the long-term thesis for Bitcoin fundamentally changed?
• Are we seeing forced or structural selling (like ETFs and complex corporate structures) that may eventually exhaust itself?
• Do current prices reflect panic more than fundamentals?

On-chain and macro conditions are far from perfect, but the combination of extreme oversold readings, long-term support tests, and widespread fear has historically been where patient dollar-cost averaging has paid off over multi-year horizons. That said, there is always the risk of lower prices in the short term, especially if macro data comes in hot.

As always, position sizing, time horizon, and risk management matter more than any single headline—whether it’s an ETF outflow streak, a Zcash bug, or Michael Saylor selling 32 BTC.