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Bitcoin set for nearly 5% decline in October

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Largest crypto liquidation in history after Trump's tariff

announcement

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Bitcoin still up over 16% this year despite October

decline

By Hannah Lang

Oct 31 (Reuters) - Bitcoin on Friday was on track for a

monthly loss in October for the first time since 2018, snapping

a seven-year streak of gains that had earned the month a lucky

reputation among cryptocurrency traders.

Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, is set for a

nearly 5% decline this month, as the digital asset has struggled

in recent weeks amid broader market jitters and muted investor

risk appetite.

Cryptocurrencies "came into October, tracking gold, tracking

stocks near all-time highs, and then as uncertainty hit people

for the first time maybe this year, they didn't rotate back into

bitcoin en masse," said Adam McCarthy, a senior research analyst

at digital market data provider Kaiko.

October saw the largest crypto liquidation in history after U.S.

President Donald Trump announced a 100% tariff on Chinese

imports and threatened export controls on critical software.

Bitcoin fell as low as $104,782.88 during the October 10-11

period, after setting a fresh record high just days earlier

above $126,000.

"That washout on the 10th, it really reminded people that

this asset class is very narrow," said McCarthy. "It's bitcoin

and (ether), and even those can still have 10% drawdowns in 15,

20 minutes."

A whirlwind October is set to end with spooked investors unsure

of the global monetary policy path in the near term, as the U.S.

Federal Reserve pushed back against market bets that it would

continue to cut rates this year as the government shutdown

blocks crucial economic data.

Meanwhile, several influential figures have expressed concerns

about high valuations in equity markets. JPMorgan Chase ( JPM )

CEO Jamie Dimon earlier this month warned of a heightened risk

of a significant correction in the U.S. stock market within the

next six months to two years.

Despite its October decline, bitcoin is still up more than

16% so far this year.

Cryptocurrencies have generally enjoyed a boost this year as

Trump has embraced digital assets, which has led to the

dismissal of a spate of lawsuits against prominent crypto

platforms and a shift by Trump's financial regulators to create

specialized rules to accommodate digital assets.