Bitcoin slips below $112,000 as ETF outflows, weaker risk appetite weigh on prices

Bitcoin’s price reversed on Tuesday as investors pulled cash from crypto funds and risk appetite cooled in the wake of last weekend’s historic wipeout.

According to The Block’s price page, the largest cryptocurrency traded below $112,000, extending a two-day slide that began after spot ETF flows turned negative. BTC’s 3% drop on the day was accompanied by price descents across majors and the broader cryptocurrency market. BNB was particularly hit among the top 10 cryptocurrencies, with the Binance-tied token nearly down double digits.

U.S. spot bitcoin and ether ETFs recorded a combined $755 million in net outflows on Tuesday, The Block reported. Timothy Misir, head of research at BRN, said redemptions “accelerated,” alongside a sharp drop in open interest, a sign leverage has stepped back as gold pushed to fresh highs and U.S. equities rebounded on Monday. The situation is currently keeping crypto on the defensive in the near term, Misir added.

“Derivatives and on-chain signals also point to derisking,” Misir commented on a sharp drop in crypto open interest. Perp DEX open interest plunged from $26 billion to under $14 billion during the multi-billion dollar crash, weekly DEX volume rose to a record $177 billion, and lending fees topped $20 million in a single day, according to DeFiLlama data shared in an X thread.

Macro tensions continue to shadow the market as well. QCP Capital said renewed U.S.–China trade frictions—highlighted by 100% U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports and reports of Chinese export curbs—helped trigger the recent cascade. The event wiped out an estimated $19 billion – $20 billion in leveraged positions before prices stabilized. Additionally, data from CoinGlass showed over $511 million in long liquidations on Oct. 14 as BTC briefly revisited $110,000.

Options desks also report a defensive tilt, but aggregated open interest in BTC options remained elevated. Flows have rotated toward downside protection after the crash, with traders favoring near-dated puts and selling upside calls, Nick Forster, founder of onchain venue Derive, shared with The Block. The setup leaves spot flows and fresh ETF demand as the next catalysts for direction, he stated.

“In BTC options, we saw heavy buying of $115K and $95K puts for the October 31 expiry, alongside a sharp reversal from call buying to call selling at the $125K strike (October 17 expiry), signaling a bearish near-term outlook,” Forster wrote.