Crypto Prices Today, December 1, 2025: Bitcoin (BTC) Crashes to $86K as Ethereum (ETH) and Altcoins Slide

The crypto market kicked off December with a sharp risk-off move: Bitcoin has dropped back toward the mid‑$80,000s, Ethereum has slipped below $2,900, and major altcoins from BNB to Solana and XRP are nursing heavier losses. Across futures platforms, hundreds of millions of dollars in leveraged positions have been wiped out, while traders nervously watch central banks and DeFi risks.

This article rounds up the key prices, news, forecasts, and on‑chain / macro analyses published on December 1, 2025, and puts them into a single, Google‑News‑friendly overview. It is informational only and not investment advice.

Crypto market today: $3T cap, rising “extreme fear”

Market data compiled this morning shows:

• Total crypto market cap down about 5% to roughly $3.04 trillion, extending last week’s weakness.  ^[1]
• Bitcoin (BTC) trading around $86,000–$86,500, off about 5% on the day.  ^[2]
• Ethereum (ETH) near $2,830–$2,850, down roughly 6% in 24 hours and about 27% lower for the month. ^[3]
• BNB around $828, Solana (SOL) near $126.5, and XRP around $2.04–$2.05, each down between 5–7% on the day.  ^[4]

According to derivatives tracker data cited by multiple outlets, more than $600 million in crypto positions have been liquidated in the last day, the majority from long traders, as thin weekend liquidity amplified price swings.  ^[5]

Sentiment gauges such as the Crypto Fear & Greed Index have slipped back into “Extreme Fear”, underlining how quickly confidence has reversed after October’s euphoria.  ^[6]

Bitcoin price today: DeFi exploit, macro jitters and a leverage flush

Spot price and recent performance

As of December 1, 2025:

• Bitcoin has fallen to the mid‑$86,000s, after briefly trading above $92,000 over the weekend.  ^[7]
• Intraday lows across major exchanges have been reported around $85,600–$85,900.  ^[8]
• BTC is now down roughly 16% for November and more than 30% below its October peak above $120,000–$126,000, depending on the venue.  ^[9]

Global macro coverage from outlets like Bloomberg notes that Bitcoin’s 6% slide below $86,000 came alongside a drop in stock index futures and other risk assets, signaling a wider turn toward safety as traders digest a dense calendar of US data and central‑bank events this week.  ^[10]

Yearn Finance exploit rattles DeFi confidence

One of the earliest catalysts for today’s move was an incident at Yearn Finance, where a flaw in the yETH pool allowed an attacker to mint an extremely large amount of yETH and flood the pool with invalid tokens.  ^[11]

• Coverage from Investing.com explains that the exploit effectively let someone “create tokens out of thin air,” spooking liquidity providers and traders who rushed to exit associated pools and correlated assets.  ^[12]
• CoinDesk similarly reports that DeFi users rapidly repriced risk once yETH backing was questioned, adding another layer of stress to a market already on edge.  ^[13]

While the direct dollar value of stolen assets is relatively modest compared with Bitcoin’s market cap, the episode has revived concerns over smart‑contract risk at a time when leverage and valuations were already stretched.

Macro overhang: BoJ, Fed and ETF flows

Beyond DeFi, macro forces are playing a central role:

• Bank of Japan (BoJ): A hawkish tone from BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda, and a jump in Japanese 2‑year yields to their highest level since 2008, have revived fears of a yen carry‑trade unwind, which historically drains liquidity from high‑beta assets like crypto.  ^[14]
• Federal Reserve:
  • Markets are pricing a high probability of a 25 bps rate cut at the December 9–10 FOMC meeting, following softer US growth and moderating inflation data.  ^[15]
  • At the same time, the Fed’s decision to end quantitative tightening on December 1 is adding another variable to the liquidity picture, with some analysts arguing that risk assets should benefit once the initial volatility fades.  ^[16]
• ETF flows: November saw billions in net outflows from US spot Bitcoin ETFs, though the final week of the month reportedly flipped back to modest net inflows for both Bitcoin and Ethereum products.  ^[17]

Several crypto‑native analysts quoted in live coverage describe today’s move as a “leverage reset”: a combination of macro‑driven de‑risking, profit‑taking after the post‑halving rally, and forced liquidations feeding on themselves in thin markets.  ^[18]

Ethereum price today and 2025 forecasts: Can FUSAKA spark a rebound?

ETH under pressure near $2,800

Ethereum has fallen harder than Bitcoin in percentage terms:

• ETH is trading around $2,830, down 5–6% on the day.  ^[19]
• Intraday lows near $2,800–$2,811 have been recorded, leaving ETH roughly 27% lower for the month despite strong activity in DeFi and Layer‑2s.  ^[20]

Several market reports emphasise that traders are rotating out of higher‑beta names and that Ethereum, despite its central role in DeFi and tokenization, is not being spared in the current deleveraging cycle.  ^[21]

Short‑term structural view: key zones

Technical and market‑structure analyses published on December 1 highlight a few levels to watch:

• ETH is testing the $2,800 demand zone, described as a key area where buyers previously stepped in. A daily close below ~$2,623 would risk opening a deeper drop toward the low‑$2,100s, according to one detailed breakdown.  ^[22]
• Other analyses emphasize that whales and institutional treasuries have been accumulating ETH on dips, with one dataset showing large wallets adding tens of thousands of coins in recent weeks despite volatility.  ^[23]

December 1: AI predictions vs reality

In a noteworthy twist, a Finbold feature published on November 29 used an AI model (ChatGPT) to forecast that Ethereum would trade near $3,360 on December 1, with a “realistic” range between $3,300 and $3,420.  ^[24]

Instead, ETH is currently trading well below that range, underscoring how fast‑moving macro shocks and DeFi incidents can invalidate even well‑reasoned short‑term forecasts. The article itself stressed that structural support, low exchange reserves and the upcoming Fusaka upgrade underpinned the bullish bias, but it did not anticipate today’s scale of forced liquidations.  ^[25]

Year‑end 2025 Ethereum price predictions

Despite today’s drawdown, several fresh forecasts remain constructively bullish on ETH into year‑end and beyond:

• Pintu News (updated December 1) argues that Ethereum is forming a stronger structural base, with price reclaiming the $2,900–$3,000 area and eyeing resistance near $3,058. Their analysis suggests that if ETH can break and hold above $3,618, a year‑end target around $4,200 is “realistic,” supported by improving market structure and falling exchange reserves.  ^[26]
• The same report notes that the upcoming FUSAKA upgrade, scheduled for December 3, has historically comparable precedents: a prior upgrade cycle saw a 55% rally in 35 days and a larger move of over 160% in just over three months. Model projections discussed in the piece point to a possible $4,500 level roughly 35 days after the upgrade window in a bullish scenario.  ^[27]
• A longer‑horizon forecast from CryptoDnes, updated for December 1, outlines a 2025 ETH price band from about $3,843 to $5,956, with an “average” scenario near $4,899, and highly optimistic cycle‑based models that see potential moves toward $9,000 in a best‑case December 2025 blow‑off top.  ^[28]

These projections are highly speculative and assume successful execution of upgrades, continued institutional adoption, and benign macro conditions—the same factors now being stress‑tested by today’s sell‑off.

Altcoins: BNB, Solana, XRP and memecoins fall harder

Altcoins are, once again, showing higher beta to Bitcoin’s move:

• BNB (BNB): around $828.5, down roughly 5%.  ^[29]
• Solana (SOL): around $126.5, down about 7% in 24 hours.  ^[30]
• XRP: roughly $2.04–$2.05, with daily losses near 7%.  ^[31]
• Popular memecoins such as Shiba Inu (SHIB), Pepe (PEPE), Bonk (BONK) and dogwifhat (WIF) have dropped between 6–13%, reflecting the typical pattern where speculative names are hit hardest during de‑risking.  ^[32]

Technical commentary from Mitrade notes that XRP is clinging to the psychological $2.00 level, with the next major support around $1.90, while bears eye any break of that zone as a trigger for deeper retracement.  ^[33]

At the same time, there are pockets of structural optimism:

• The same live‑blog coverage that tracks today’s crash also highlights that altcoins have historically outperformed Bitcoin during periods when the Federal Reserve is not actively running quantitative tightening, pointing to multi‑year cycles in which increased liquidity favored higher‑risk tokens.  ^[34]
• An ETF for Chainlink (LINK) is expected to launch this week, after Grayscale converts its existing trust into a spot ETF—a milestone some see as another step toward altcoin financialization.  ^[35]

For now, though, price action shows investors selling first and asking questions later across most non‑Bitcoin names.

Why is crypto down today? Four main drivers

Across today’s news, analyses and order‑flow data, four themes stand out:

1. Thin weekend liquidity + high leverage

Multiple reports describe a classic weekend liquidity trap:

• With institutional desks quieter and volumes thin late Sunday and early Monday (UTC), relatively small sell orders pushed BTC down several thousand dollars within minutes.  ^[36]
• The move tripped cascading liquidations in over‑leveraged long positions, with more than $600–700 million in positions wiped out in a matter of hours across futures platforms.  ^[37]

2. DeFi exploit and security nerves

While Yearn’s yETH pool exploit is small compared with the overall market, it lands at a sensitive time:

• The incident undermines confidence in complex yield products and reminds traders that DeFi smart‑contract risk never fully disappears, especially when capital is chasing double‑digit yields.  ^[38]
• For some participants, it is a cue to reduce exposure to riskier protocols until the full scope of the exploit and remediation steps are clear.

3. Macro: BoJ, Fed, China and Europe

Crypto is trading less like an isolated “digital island” and more like a macro‑sensitive risk asset:

• BoJ hawkishness and rising Japanese yields are pressuring carry trades that previously funneled cheap yen into higher‑yielding assets, including Bitcoin.  ^[39]
• US Federal Reserve expectations for a December rate cut remain firm, but the path there is uncertain, with markets on edge ahead of ISM data, JOLTS, payroll indicators and the December 9–10 meeting.  ^[40]
• Reports also point to renewed anti‑crypto rhetoric from China and tax proposals in parts of Europe as incremental drags on sentiment.  ^[41]

4. ETFs, whales and profit‑taking

Finally, structural flows are shifting:

• After months of relentless inflows, Bitcoin ETFs saw about $3.5 billion in net outflows in November, even as Solana and XRP ETFs attracted fresh capital.  ^[42]
• On‑chain and derivatives metrics suggest large holders (whales) have been gradually reducing long exposure or hedging via shorts, while retail traders chased late‑cycle rallies—a setup that often precedes chop or corrective phases.  ^[43]

Together, these forces have created what one analyst described as a “risky start to December”, with crypto trading more like a leveraged expression of global liquidity than a separate, insulated asset class.  ^[44]

Short‑term outlook: key levels to watch for BTC, ETH and XRP

None of today’s commentary can guarantee where prices go next, but several recurring technical zones appear across professional analyses.

Bitcoin (BTC)

• Near‑term support:
  • $88,000–$86,000: current battleground zone. A break and daily close below this range puts focus on $84,000–$82,000, and then $80,000–$78,000.  ^[45]
• Deeper supports:
  • Some technicians highlight prior swing lows around $80,600 and $74,500 as potential downside magnets if macro headwinds persist.  ^[46]
• Resistance / recovery markers:
  • $92,000–$95,000: first major resistance band; staying below it keeps the bias “neutral to bearish” in the short term.  ^[47]
  • A sustained break above $100,000–$105,000 is widely seen as the signal that the broader corrective phase is ending and the bull trend is resuming.  ^[48]

Ethereum (ETH)

• Key support:
  • $2,800 zone: actively defended today; a decisive break below $2,623 would invalidate the current consolidation and risk a slide toward the $2,100–$2,150 area.  ^[49]
• Upside trigger zones:
  • $3,058: short‑term pivot; reclaiming and holding this level is flagged as the first sign of a more durable recovery.
  • $3,618: next resistance; above here, bullish models start targeting $4,200+ into year‑end in optimistic upgrade‑driven scenarios.  ^[50]

XRP

• Psychological support:
  • $2.00: currently being tested; losing it increases odds of a move toward $1.90, the next technical support in several trading desks’ maps.  ^[51]
• Short‑term upside:
  • A bounce that holds above $2.00 could set up a retest of the $2.20 region, where descending resistance lines currently converge.  ^[52]

These levels are not guarantees, but they are the zones around which many active traders appear to be clustering orders today.

December 2025 forecasts: from cautious consolidation to moon‑shot scenarios

Looking specifically at forecasts and scenario analyses dated around December 1, the range of views is wide:

• Base‑case / cautious:
  • NordFX’s weekly outlook characterizes Bitcoin as “neutral to bearish” below $92,000–$95,000, expecting choppy consolidation with a downward bias unless buyers regain control above $100,000.  ^[53]
  • Several trading‑desk notes and live blogs point to the $80,000 zone as the area where more patient buyers might re‑enter aggressively if the current correction deepens.  ^[54]
• Constructively bullish:
  • Crypto.news’ December‑outlook piece suggests that a dovish Federal Reserve stance on December 10could help BTC gravitate back toward the $100,000–$105,000 range by late month, while a hawkish surprise might instead drive a revisit of the low‑$80,000s.  ^[55]
  • KuCoin’s daily market report highlights that, despite recent price drops, spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs have just logged their first net‑positive inflow week since October, hinting at underlying investor appetite that could support prices once volatility cools.  ^[56]
• Aggressively bullish / cycle‑based:
  • Pintu’s Ethereum analysis and CryptoDnes’ long‑term model both envision scenarios where ETH trades between roughly $4,200 and $9,000 by the end of 2025, assuming successful network upgrades, strong developer activity, and renewed risk appetite.  ^[57]
  • CoinDCX and other long‑range Bitcoin forecasters continue to publish multi‑year projections that extend from $120,000+ in late 2025 to very high six‑figure levels later in the decade, though many of those models were calibrated before the latest drawdown and explicitly label their scenarios as speculative.  ^[58]

Seen together, today’s forecasts tell a familiar story: short‑term uncertainty remains high, but many institutional and retail‑facing analyses still frame the current drop as a correction within a larger bullish cycle, not yet as a definitive top.

What this means for investors and traders

Given the combination of DeFi risk, macro cross‑currents and heavy leverage, today’s price action is a reminder of a few evergreen points:

• Volatility cuts both ways. The same leverage and liquidity that can drive parabolic rallies can also generate $5,000–$10,000 intraday swings in Bitcoin and double‑digit percentage moves in altcoins.  ^[59]
• Forecasts are not guarantees. AI‑generated price targets and cycle‑based models (for example, ETH near $3,360 today, or multi‑thousand‑dollar projections for 2025–2030) can be useful for scenario‑planning, but they can be invalidated in a single session by new information.  ^[60]
• Macro matters more than ever. Crypto now reacts quickly to central‑bank signals, ETF flows and sovereign commentary, behaving more like a high‑beta extension of global risk markets than a separate “decoupled” asset class.  ^[61]

For long‑term holders, some analysts argue that structural trends—spot ETFs, sovereign interest (such as Kazakhstan’s exploratory crypto reserve plans), and ongoing Ethereum upgrades—remain intact, even if prices are currently trending lower.  ^[62]

For short‑term traders, the message from today’s coverage is more straightforward:

• Respect key levels (especially BTC $80K–$86K and ETH $2,600–$2,800).
• Be wary of excessive leverage when volatility is already elevated.
• Treat any forecast—human or AI‑driven—as one scenario among many, not a roadmap.

Again, nothing in this article is financial advice. Cryptocurrencies are high‑risk, highly volatile assets; anyone considering exposure should do independent research, understand their own risk tolerance, and never invest money they cannot afford to lose.

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