Why Is Crypto Market Crashing? Bitcoin Drops Below $73K as Zcash Leads Losses

Why is the crypto market crashing? A stronger-than-expected CPI report boosted expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike. ZEC dropped below $1,000, recording the steepest losses among the 20 largest cryptocurrencies this week.

Why is crypto falling on Wednesday, November 11? The market downturn triggered by Tuesday’s hotter-than-forecast U.S. inflation data has continued into Wednesday, with nearly all major cryptocurrencies trading in negative territory.

Bitcoin (BTC) fell below $73,000 on Tuesday, reaching $72,727 on Binance, before recovering to around $73,800. Ether (ETH) briefly declined to $2,006, while XRP and Solana (SOL) posted 24-hour losses of 2% to 3%. Meanwhile, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which measures market sentiment on a scale of 0 to 100, dropped to 29.

The inflation data reshaped market expectations for the Federal Reserve’s next move. Treasury yields climbed, while the probability of a more aggressive December rate increase nearly tripled in just two hours.

One cryptocurrency has experienced a significantly steeper decline than the broader market. Zcash (ZEC), launched in 2016, is a privacy-focused digital asset that allows users to conceal transaction details, including the sender, recipient and payment amount. The token fell below $1,000 on Wednesday for the first time since September 5. ZEC is currently trading near $966, representing a 15.4% decline over 24 hours and a 24.8% drop over the past seven days.

Zcash has been among the strongest-performing cryptocurrencies this year. Its price climbed from approximately $526 on January 1 to a closing peak of $1,653 on September 26. A review of the 20 largest cryptocurrencies listed on Binance shows that ZEC has suffered the biggest daily and weekly losses, despite remaining up 89% in 2026.

Why Is Crypto Crashing? Tuesday’s CPI Report Is the Main Trigger

Inflation exceeded expectations. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 0.4% in October, surpassing economists’ forecast of 0.3%. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, advanced 0.3%, compared with the anticipated 0.2%.

The figures reached a threshold previously highlighted by the Federal Reserve. Governor Christopher Waller stated in a speech delivered hours before the CPI release that core inflation around 0.3% could justify considering a 50-basis-point rate increase in December.

Market participants responded quickly. Polymarket data showed the probability of a December rate hike of at least 0.5 percentage points climbing from 4.4% immediately before the report to 12.8% within two hours. The odds have since eased to 9.4%, while expectations for a conventional 25-basis-point increase stand at 85.5%.

Rising interest rates put pressure on cryptocurrencies because higher yields make traditional investments, such as cash and government bonds, more attractive. This encourages investors to reduce exposure to riskier assets. On Tuesday, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield increased from 4.86% to 4.98%.

Two additional factors intensified the market decline:

Nvidia: Shares of the semiconductor giant dropped 5.5% to $168.89 on Tuesday, marking their lowest closing price since March 30. A Republican senator also urged CEO Jensen Huang to resign over his affair. Cryptocurrency markets frequently move alongside major AI-related stocks, making Nvidia’s decline another source of pressure.

ETF outflows: U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded net withdrawals of $969 million over the last five trading sessions. CryptoQuant contributor Axel Adler Jr. tracked the withdrawals in a report highlighted by Lookonchain.

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Why Is ZEC Falling Harder Than Other Cryptocurrencies?

Zcash is experiencing a deeper correction partly because of its substantial rally earlier this year. A comparison of price performance across 20 major Binance-listed cryptocurrencies over the past week and since January 1 shows the following:

• ZEC: Declined 24.8% over seven days, the largest loss among the group, while maintaining an 89% gain in 2026.
• Other cryptocurrencies: Only NEAR and Tron (TRX) have also recorded positive year-to-date performance. Bitcoin has dropped 6.1% over the past week and 15.9% since the beginning of the year.

During periods of heightened uncertainty, traders often sell assets that have generated significant profits to secure their gains. ZEC has now fallen 41% from its September 26 closing peak of $1,653.

Leverage has further accelerated the decline. On Hyperliquid, ZEC plunged from $1,199.20 to $965.79 in less than 24 hours. Lookonchain identified 32 traders with leveraged bullish positions exceeding $1 million each. Of these traders, 27 are currently in negative territory, collectively facing approximately $23.7 million in unrealized losses.

However, steep daily declines have not always resulted in prolonged weakness. Since January 2025, ZEC has experienced 14 single-day drops of at least 12% on Binance. In eight of those instances, the token traded higher seven days later, with a median gain of 6.5%.

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ZEC Price Analysis: Can $933 Support Hold Above the Whales’ Liquidation Levels?

Zcash is trading near $966 after touching $961.07 on Wednesday, its lowest level since September 4.

On the daily chart, ZEC has moved below its 50-day exponential moving average (EMA), which places greater weight on recent price movements, currently at $1,200.68. However, the cryptocurrency remains above its 200-day EMA at $872.23.

Resistance levels:

• $1,050, corresponding to Wednesday’s intraday high.
• $1,191.76, a recent swing high near the 50-day EMA.

Support levels:

• $933.12, the September 4 low.
• Approximately $895, where Lookonchain’s tracked positions of two major ZEC bulls on Hyperliquid face liquidation near $894 and $895.
• $872.23, the 200-day EMA, which represents another potential support zone.

For Bitcoin, traders are monitoring Tuesday’s low of $72,727 as the immediate support level. A break below that threshold could expose BTC to the next support near $68,902, corresponding to the August 20 low.

Ultimately, the crypto market downturn is being driven by hotter-than-expected inflation, increasing expectations for a more aggressive Federal Reserve rate hike and growing pressure on leveraged positions. Zcash has suffered the most as bullish traders face mounting losses following its earlier rally. A daily close above $1,050 could provide the first indication that selling pressure is beginning to weaken.

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