Bitcoin prices plunged to 65K, the US stock market cycle became bleak, altcoins fell 10%-20%

What should have been a high point for crypto assets amid easing inflation data turned out to be a very bad week. Bitcoin (BTC) fell to its lowest price in four weeks on Friday.

During U.S. trading hours, Bitcoin plunged more than 2% from around $67,000 to $65,100. The price of the leading cryptocurrency has fallen 7.5% in the past seven days.

Smaller cryptocurrencies have suffered even more, with the overall market benchmark CoinDesk 20 index down nearly 12 percent week over week. Ethereum (ETH) fell to $3,400, losing more than 10% over the period. According to CoinGecko, native tokens of competing L1 networks such as Solana (SOL), Avalanche (AVAX), Cardano (ADA), and Near (NEAR) fell by 15-20%.

The rapid price plunge led to the liquidation of nearly $180 million in leveraged derivatives trading positions across all crypto assets in the last 24 hours, most of which were long positions betting on price increases. In total, the crash liquidated more than $870 million, removing excessive leverage from the market.

Just a few days ago, analysts and many market participants were expecting Bitcoin to break new highs, supported by slowing inflation and weaker economic data. However, once the attempt was made to pull up, Bitcoin was quickly sold off and eventually fell into a sideways shock.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday forecast just one interest rate cut this year, down from the central bank's previous forecast and dashing investor hopes for an easing of monetary policy this summer. Political uncertainty over the French election also pushed the U.S. dollar index (DXY) to its highest level in more than a month against other major currencies, putting pressure on bitcoin.

Bitcoin also struggled with selling by miners and profit-taking by long-term holders near the $70,000 range. The 10X research report notes that these factors have put pressure on the broader crypto market.

In summary, the crypto market experienced a lot of volatility this week, with Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies falling sharply on the back of an expected breakout but failure, and leveraged liquidation leaving the market further troubled. With the future economic and political situation uncertain, investors need to be cautious to cope with the possibility of more volatility.