Bitcoin broke below $83,000 on 7 October as a global bond sell-off resumed, dragging crypto lower alongside equities after a run at record stock prices the day before.
The coin fell to $82,734 on Bitstamp, its lowest traded level of October, and BTC/USD was last at $82,871 that day. The break matters beyond crypto: US 10-year and 30-year Treasury yields reached 24-year highs of 5.36% and 5.73% on the day, and Bitcoin is once again trading as a risk asset at the mercy of the rates market.
Yields and Hormuz fears set the tone
US bond yields hit their highest levels since 2002 amid concerns about inflation and government debt loads worldwide. Oil added its own pressure: Brent crude reached $102 per barrel and WTI $91 after an adviser to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ Commander, quoted by Reuters, warned of a clampdown on traffic through the Strait of Hormuz that the adviser had deemed illegal.
Muhammad Qubbaj, co-head of North America interest rate product sales and trading at Goldman Sachs, said yields would likely be under ongoing pressure amid elevated energy prices and subdued demand from institutional investors, a view published the day before the drop. The S&P 500 fell 0.6% to 7,773 points on the day, a sharp reversal from Tuesday’s all-time highs, and crypto-linked equities slid with it.
Support breaks and futures retreat
On the chart, the move through $83,000 invalidated support at Bitcoin’s 21-day simple moving average of $83,850. CryptoQuant flagged $69,500, the average cost basis for short-term holders, as the level worth monitoring on higher time frames, while overhead ask liquidity sits near $87,000.
Derivatives positioning points to a broad retreat rather than a single flush. On-chain analysis from CryptoQuant shows Bitcoin open interest down nearly 10% since 22 September, from about $28.8 billion to $26.0 billion, while the price itself barely moved over that stretch. The firm said the combination of subdued spot demand and falling open interest suggests futures traders have shown limited willingness to take on additional risk. Liquidations of crypto positions hit $550 million as Bitcoin first dipped below $84,000 earlier in the week, roughly 17 hours before the October low.
