Bitcoin experienced a sharp whipsaw on Wednesday, rallying above $90,000 before tumbling back to weekly lows below $86,000. The decline mirrored a Nasdaq drop driven by fading enthusiasm for artificial intelligence stocks. Traders note an oversold market amid year-end positioning.
On December 17, 2025, bitcoin underwent volatile trading in early U.S. sessions. The cryptocurrency surged from around $87,000 to above $90,000 within minutes, only to reverse sharply and return to the $87,000 area. By later in the day, it had fallen further to a weekly low of $85,500, exhibiting what analysts call a 'Bart Simpson pattern'—a quick rise, plateau, and plunge.
This movement aligned with broader market pressures. The Nasdaq declined by more than 1.5%, led by steep drops in AI-related stocks: Nvidia, Broadcom, and Oracle fell 3%-6%. Contributing to the sentiment shift, Blue Owl Capital reportedly withdrew from a $10 billion funding deal for an Oracle data center in Michigan. Meanwhile, precious metals bucked the trend, with silver surging 5% to a new record and gold rising 1% toward its all-time high.
The price swings triggered over $190 million in liquidations across crypto derivatives in the past four hours, including $72 million in long positions and $121 million in shorts, per CoinGlass data. For the week, bitcoin was down 8%, with ether, solana, and XRP each declining around 12%-15%.
Analysts attribute the volatility to shrinking liquidity and an exhausted market. Hunter Rogers, co-founder of TeraHash, stated: 'I think we’re now seeing an exhausted market. In that environment, even mild selling activity pushes the market lower.' He emphasized the need for bitcoin to hold $80,000-$85,000 as support.
Jasper De Maere, desk strategist at Wintermute, described the market as stuck in a $86,000-$92,000 range with high volatility. He cautioned against over-relying on technical indicators due to year-end profit-taking and tax considerations: 'People are winding down positions to take a breather ... short-lived rallies are being sold into quickly.' De Maere noted signs of oversold conditions: 'I feel like we're at max pain. In the short term, I would say we're definitely oversold.' He anticipates sideways trading until catalysts like late-December options expirations emerge.
