JPMorgan

Equity

Bitcoin

Bitcoin (BTC) stayed under pressure below $80,000 at Friday’s Wall Street open as AI fears returned to intensify a broader risk-asset rout.
Key points:
<ul>
 <li style="">Bitcoin struggled to hold around $77,000 as risk assets fell across the board at the US open.</li>
 <li style="">The Nasdaq Composite Index fell to 25,500, its lowest levels since early August, while gold dropped to $3,891 per ounce for the first time since October 2025.</li>
 <li style="">BTC/USD risked sealing October losses or 7.7%, the most since 2014.</li>
</ul>
<h2 id="tech-contagion-ramps-up-as-nasdaq-drops-2-5">Tech contagion ramps up as Nasdaq drops 2.5%</h2>
Data from TradingView showed BTC/USD down 1.1% on the day after dropping to its lowest levels since Sept. 18.
<img src="https://s3-images.ctmedia.io/media/content/2026/10/01M66RVDDSHZ5W9HKE5XN31XD3/pasted-image-2982.png" alt="" width="1582" height="902">
BTC/USD one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
US stock markets opened sharply lower as traders reacted to <a href="https://ct.com/markets/bitcoin-price-metrics-hint-at-rebound-as-16b-liquidations-follow-binance-hack" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">weak forward guidance</a> from tech giants. Intel, which on Thursday warned of weaker Q4 sales than markets had anticipated, saw its stock price drop by nearly 30% on Friday’s open.
The sell-off weighed on both tech giants and chipmakers, with analysis warning of fresh challenges to AI-sector confidence.&nbsp;
“With renewed fears over AI Monetization, the Equity rotation is likely to continue today but the broader indices will reflect Tech’s downside,” JPMorgan wrote in a note, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/29/stock-market-today-live-updates.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">quoted</a> by CNBC.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index was 2.5% lower at the time of writing at around 25,500, a level last seen on Aug. 3.
<img src="https://s3-images.ctmedia.io/media/content/2026/10/01M66RVV75RZCHC9Q2GE9TK60P/pasted-image-2983.png" alt="" width="1582" height="902">Nasdaq Composite Index one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Beyond stocks, contagion spread to precious metals, with gold trading as low as $3,891 per ounce, its weakest in a year.&nbsp;
<img src="https://s3-images.ctmedia.io/media/content/2026/10/01M66RWGJDB2WMQGFZ7XZ4M3FB/pasted-image-2984.png" alt="" width="1582" height="902">
XAU/USD one-week chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
 
<h2 id="bitcoin-on-track-for-weakest-october-since-2014">Bitcoin on track for weakest October since 2014</h2>
Crypto markets continued to deal with the aftermath of a <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/live-updates-binance-63b-hack-linked-to-north-koreas-tradertraitor" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">multi-billion dollar hack</a> of Binance, the largest crypto exchange.&nbsp;
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/will-golds-infinite-mint-bug-make-bitcoin-more-valuable" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Will gold’s ‘infinite mint bug’ make Bitcoin more valuable?</a>
The platform said that it would cover the losses with its own capital after the theft of $6.3 billion in coins and tokens. A spokesperson <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/binance-5-billion-replacement-crypto-in-custody" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">told Cointelegraph</a> that Binance had $5 billion in matching tokens currently available.
Commenting on the outlook for crypto, trading company QCP Capital warned that macro conditions, tech-sector fears and the Binance hack had “created a period of heightened market repricing.”
“Technology sector earnings guidance regarding future capital expenditure will remain a critical variable for understanding the trajectory of artificial intelligence infrastructure investment and expected profitability,” it <a href="https://www.qcpgroup.com/insights/qcp-market-colour-56/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">summarized</a> in analysis on Friday.
At $77,000, BTC/USD was set to close the month 7.7% lower — its worst October performance since 2014, per data from <a href="https://www.coinglass.com/today" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">CoinGlass</a>.
<img src="https://s3-images.ctmedia.io/media/content/2026/10/01M66RX5WW1ZZ4AG0PYM2YT39J/pasted-image-2985.png" alt="" width="1600" height="1374">
BTC/USD monthly returns. Source: CoinGlass&nbsp;

Bitcoin risks worst October in 12 years as tech sell-off spreads to gold

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