Bitcoin

Bitcoin (<a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/bitcoin/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">BTC</a>) has fresh competition. The world’s largest cryptocurrency is now fighting for speculative capital with a new generation of mega-IPOs, led by SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic.As investors reposition billions of dollars for this year’s expected public-market debuts, Bitcoin is feeling the pressure. In late June, Bitcoin traded below $60,000 for the first time since September 2024, marking a decline of more than 50% from last year’s high of around $126,000.Analysts are bracing for a longer drawdown. Citi cut its 12-month Bitcoin target to $82,000 from $112,000, citing weak investor appetite, ETF outflows, and a rotation into AI-related assets.“ETF flows, an important driver of prices, have turned negative recently,” Citi <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/citi-cuts-bitcoin-ether-forecasts-etf-flows-turn-negative-2026-07-01/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">said</a>.<img src="https://academy-public.coinmarketcap.com/optimized-uploads/621b6845f5b04eabba7d016946b1ac8c.jpg">Bitcoin has taken a hit as AI-linked mega-IPOs steal the spotlight. Source: CoinMarketCapBitcoin’s weakness has coincided with intense investor demand for some of the largest <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/academy/glossary/initial-public-offering-ipo" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">initial public offerings (IPOs)</a> in equity market history.SpaceX’s debut was the bellwether. Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite company listed in June in the largest IPO on record, raising $75 billion and valuing the company at $1.77 trillion, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/musks-spacex-prices-record-75-billion-ipo-135-share-2026-06-11/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">according</a> to Reuters. OpenAI and Anthropic have also confidentially submitted draft S-1 filings, giving both companies the option to go public if market conditions remain favorable.Together, the three listings could soak up as much as $200 billion in fresh capital, <a href="https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/spillover/spacex-goes-public-what-ipos-tell-us-about-capital-markets" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">according</a> to Sebastian Mallaby, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.“The combined demand for capital from SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic will be so considerable that it is likely to create disruptions in the capital markets,” D.A. Davidson analyst Gil Luria <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/ai-giant-anthropic-confidentially-files-us-ipo-2026-06-01/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">told </a>Reuters.<img src="https://academy-public.coinmarketcap.com/optimized-uploads/9af1f15824184680a3a98705974d77ba.png">Anticipated tech mega-IPOs, including OpenAI’s, are diverting attention—and capital—from cryptocurrencies. Source: CoinMarketCap<blockquote>Read More: <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/academy/article/wall-street-bullish-blockchain-tradfi-building-crypto" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Wall Street Is Bullish on Blockchain: Why TradFi Keeps Building With Crypto</a></blockquote><h2 id="giant-sucking-sound">Giant Sucking Sound</h2>For Bitcoin, the issue is simple: mega-IPOs require cash, and Bitcoin offers a deep well of <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/academy/glossary/liquidity" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">liquidity</a>.Traders can sell Bitcoin to buy SpaceX exposure, and funds can rotate out of Bitcoin ETFs and into hotter public-market growth stories.Crucially, this year’s tech mega-IPOs are courting retail investors directly. That makes them competitors for the same source of risk capital that propelled last year’s crypto rally.SpaceX set aside up to 30% of its IPO shares, or $22.5 billion, for retail investors, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/why-blockbuster-spacex-ipo-may-spell-more-bad-news-crypto-2026-06-10/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">according</a> to Reuters. OpenAI has also signaled plans for a large retail allocation, and analysts expect Anthropic may follow a similar path.“Crypto is a funding currency for a lot of this,” Spencer Hallarn, global head of over-the-counter trading at GSR, told Reuters. “It’s got to come from somewhere.”<img src="https://academy-public.coinmarketcap.com/optimized-uploads/e2fc29555700459582f0e34da82d575d.jpg">Investors may cash out of crypto holdings to rotate into AI-linked stocks. Source: CoinMarketCap<h2 id="bad-timing-for-bitcoin">Bad Timing for Bitcoin</h2>The pressure is hitting at a vulnerable time for Bitcoin. <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/academy/glossary/bitcoin-etf" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Spot Bitcoin ETFs</a>, which helped drive the prior bull market, have turned from a source of demand into a source of pressure.In June, Bitcoin ETFs recorded their worst month on record, posting more than $4.5 billion in outflows, <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2026/07/01/live-markets-u-s-spot-bitcoin-etfs-had-their-worst-month-ever-in-june-shedding-usd4-5-billion" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">according</a> to SoSoValue.Citi said ETF flows remain one of the most important drivers of Bitcoin prices. The bank cut its 12-month net ETF inflow assumption from $10 billion to zero.That could mean more downside for Bitcoin. In a strong market, mega-IPOs might sharpen investors’ appetite for risk. In a weaker market, they can dominate the market’s finite attention and liquidity.Cryptocurrency critic Peter Schiff <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/crypto/articles/bitcoin-price-fall-20-000-163215370.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">said</a> Bitcoin could fall to as low as $20,000 if traders fail to defend the $50,000 support level."There is way too much complacency in Bitcoin for the market to be anywhere near a bottom," Schiff said in a June 3 X post.<img src="https://academy-public.coinmarketcap.com/optimized-uploads/056791bdbb9c49e89f385ba30649e1d1.jpg">Analysts fear that this year’s IPO season could mean more downside for Bitcoin. Source: CoinMarketCap<h2 id="the-wealth-effect">The Wealth Effect</h2>Still, there are reasons to remain optimistic.Even if the IPOs raise roughly $200 billion combined, that would still be far smaller than Bitcoin’s market capitalization of more than $1 trillion. Plus, most of the money would not need to come from Bitcoin; institutions are more likely to tap cash, money market funds, and other stock holdings.Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee has argued that markets can absorb the coming IPO supply without forcing a broad sell-off. He <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2026/05/22/tom-lee-says-trillions-in-tech-ipo-supply-won-t-crash-the-s-and-p-500" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">said</a> many institutions remain underallocated to public stocks after years of chasing higher returns in alternative assets.SpaceX’s trading also complicates the bear case. The stock opened at $150 per share on June 12, about 10% above its $135 IPO price, but has posted only modest gains since. It recently traded at around $158. Bitcoin, meanwhile, has held near $60,000, dampening fears of a major unwind.Additionally, a successful IPO cycle could potentially spark a broader rally. Gains from SpaceX, OpenAI, or Anthropic could eventually move into higher-risk assets, including crypto. Newly liquid wealth from early investors and employees could add to that effect. Business Insider <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-spacex-employee-millionaires-should-spend-ipo-windfall-2026-6" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">reported</a> that SpaceX’s IPO was expected to mint about 4,400 new millionaires, including 400 centimillionaires.“You’re going to have the single largest wealth event potentially in the history of the world,” Matthew Fleissig, CEO of investment advisory firm Pathstone, told Business Insider.In time, the same feared IPOs could become a tailwind for Bitcoin.<img src="https://academy-public.coinmarketcap.com/optimized-uploads/74fbaa1c8e3d4575a86b32d2e6a83287.jpg">Strong IPO gains could eventually benefit other risk assets, including Bitcoin. Source: CoinMarketCap<blockquote>Read More: <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/academy/article/one-million-bitcoin-price-btc-bull-case" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">3 Ways Bitcoin Price Could Hit $1M, According to BTC Bulls</a></blockquote><h2 id="riding-the-wave">Riding the Wave</h2>The near-term risk is clear. SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic are offering investors a fresh way to buy high-growth stories while crypto momentum is fading.The longer-term outlook is less certain. JPMorgan strategists framed the IPO boom as both a financial and psychological test for markets.“Mega offerings can be as much a psychological event as a financial one,” they <a href="https://www.jpmorgan.com/insights/markets-and-economy/top-market-takeaways/tmt-the-ipo-wave-is-historic-so-is-todays-market" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">wrote</a>. “Periods of strong IPO activity are typically associated with rising optimism, risk appetite and confidence in growth opportunities.”With two mega-IPOs still looming, the question remains whether Bitcoin will ride the wave or crash beneath it.

Mega IPOs Test Bitcoin’s Liquidity as AI Stocks Steal the Spotlight

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