Bitcoin remained under pressure on Friday as renewed concerns about the cost and availability of financing for artificial-intelligence infrastructure contributed to weakness across stock markets. The cryptocurrency traded below $82,000 after losing more than 3% the previous day, while large outflows from US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds and a wave of leveraged liquidations added to the market strain.
According to Cointelegraph, Bitcoin briefly fell below $81,000 during the latest move, reaching $80,840 on Bitstamp before stabilizing. The decline unfolded as investors reassessed whether companies building infrastructure for AI can sustain their spending plans and generate adequate returns amid higher financing costs.
AI financing concerns spread into equities
The latest pressure was linked in part to renewed anxiety over profitability in the AI sector and the cost of protecting major companies against default. CoreWeave, a provider of neocloud infrastructure, was among the most heavily affected shares. The company’s stock fell to its lowest level since May 2025 and was down 15.5% for the week by the close of Thursday’s US trading session. A Bernstein price-target reduction from $74 to $51 added to the selling pressure.
QCP Capital, a cryptocurrency trading company, said that credit stress in the neocloud infrastructure industry had begun to affect broader equity markets. The firm said institutional investors were assessing technology companies’ capital-expenditure commitments and profitability, particularly those that depend on continued expansion in AI infrastructure.
The concern also appeared in Asian markets on Friday. South Korea’s KOSPI Composite Index opened at 5,402 points and fell as low as 5,305, its lowest level since late July, before ending the session 0.3% higher. The move illustrated how worries that began around AI-related financing were affecting sentiment beyond the companies directly involved in the sector.
Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang told CNBC on Thursday that neocloud buildouts were facing a “scarcity of capital.” He said demand for capital was substantially greater than its availability. QCP Capital also pointed to lower-than-expected capital expenditure at Tesla, reported previously by Cointelegraph, saying the figures reinforced concerns that elevated financing costs could slow AI infrastructure construction and reduce expected returns for projects requiring substantial investment.
Bitcoin ETFs see largest daily outflow since June
Bitcoin’s decline took place within a recent trading range of roughly $80,000 to $87,000. After Thursday’s 3.2% drop, the token struggled to recover and remained below $82,000 into the opening of Wall Street trading on Friday.
Investor flows into regulated Bitcoin investment products reflected the change in sentiment. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows of $635 million on Thursday, their largest one-day withdrawal since late June. ETF flows are closely watched because they provide an indication of demand from investors using exchange-traded products to gain exposure to Bitcoin rather than holding the cryptocurrency directly.
The sell-off also affected leveraged traders. CoinGlass data showed total crypto liquidations of $336 million over the 24 hours to noon UTC, including $281 million in liquidated long positions. Long positions are bets that an asset’s price will rise. When prices fall sharply, traders who borrowed funds or used leverage can be forced to close those positions, potentially adding to market pressure.
The liquidation figures were higher than the $280 million of long-position liquidations cited in the market update, reflecting the different reporting points and periods used in the data. Together, the figures showed that the move toward the lower end of Bitcoin’s range caught bullish traders off guard.
Current crypto market picture
Moneyiar market data at 08:09 on October 24, 2026, showed Bitcoin at $80,636.942949392, down 1.09% over 24 hours and 1.17% over seven days. Solana was priced at $101.7668435338, with a 24-hour decline of 2.47% and a seven-day decline of 2.99%.
Other assets tracked by Moneyiar were also lower. Lighter stood at $3.1006673809, down 9.1% over 24 hours and 3.31% over seven days. Basic Attention Token traded at $0.1627748833, falling 6.78% in the past day and 19.04% over the past week.
Bitcoin’s latest consolidation therefore came as weakness in technology shares, concerns about AI-related capital spending and substantial ETF outflows combined with forced selling in leveraged crypto positions. The market data indicated that the pressure was continuing into the following day, although Bitcoin remained above the $80,000 level that marked the lower boundary of the recent range.
