Bitcoin price today: why BTC fell below $78,000 on 30 October

The short answer. Bitcoin dropped to $77,646 on Friday 30 October, a six-week low, according to Reuters, which quotes CoinGecko data. CNBC reports a fall of more than 4% to $77,994.96, after bitcoin broke below the $80,000 level. Both outlets tie the move to Binance, the large crypto exchange, reporting a potential security issue.

Where bitcoin was a day earlier. On Thursday 29 October, Investing.com said bitcoin was little changed at $80,258.10 at 10:42 ET, after a short rebound faded. Later that day Zonebourse, citing MT Newswires, reported that crypto prices fell and bitcoin slipped under $81,000.

The backdrop. On 28 October the Fed held its target range at 3.75% to 4%. The vote was 10 to 2. Lisa D. Cook and Beth M. Hammack preferred to raise the range by a quarter point. The Fed statement says inflation remains elevated. On 29 October the US Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the PCE price index rose 0.5% in September and 3.6% from a year earlier. Without food and energy it rose 0.3% in the month and 3.1% in the year. Investing.com wrote that traders saw about an 84.6% chance of a rate rise in December, per CME FedWatch. It added that higher rates tend to hurt risky assets such as crypto, and that weak results from Alphabet and Samsung weighed on tech stocks, which crypto often follows. Our Fed story: https://freekonomist.com/news/fed-holds-rate-3-75-4-two-dissents-for-hike-2026-10-28/.

What moved it on Friday. Reuters says crypto prices fell after Binance reported a potential security issue and said more than $2.5 bn in assets had been frozen. Ether hit a two-month low of $2,238.76. BNB, the token that pays Binance fees, was down more than 8% over 24 hours at $694. CNBC says Binance had not explicitly confirmed a hack, and that a Binance spokesperson said user funds remained safe. We cover the incident here: https://freekonomist.com/news/binance-hack-followup-frozen-funds-statement-2026-10-30/. More about the exchange: https://freekonomist.com/exchanges/binance/.

What we cannot say. No source we opened says the Fed or inflation caused the Friday drop. The Investing.com report is from the day before and describes a flat market. CNBC says Arkham Intelligence identified nearly $6 bn across 55 wallet addresses potentially linked to the incident, so the scale may be bigger than what is frozen. Prices change by the minute, so check a live quote. Bitcoin's page: https://freekonomist.com/crypto/btc/.

حقائق مؤكدة

• On 28 October the Federal Open Market Committee kept the federal funds target range at 3.75% to 4% (written 3-3/4 to 4 percent), by a 10 to 2 vote. Lisa D. Cook and Beth M. Hammack preferred to raise it by 1/4 percentage point.^[1]
• The Fed statement says inflation remains elevated.^[1]
• The US PCE price index rose 0.5% in September from August and 3.6% from a year earlier. Excluding food and energy it rose 0.3% in the month and 3.1% in the year. The data came out on 29 October.^[2]
• On 29 October Investing.com wrote that bitcoin was little changed at $80,258.10 at 10:42 ET, after a short rebound faded.^[3]
• Investing.com wrote that traders put the chance of a December rate rise at about 84.6%, per CME FedWatch.^[3]
• Investing.com wrote that weak quarterly results from Alphabet and Samsung weighed on tech stocks and risk sentiment, and that crypto usually follows tech stocks. It also wrote that higher rates are unfavorable for speculative assets such as crypto.^[3]
• On 29 October Zonebourse, citing MT Newswires, reported that major cryptocurrencies fell and bitcoin passed under $81,000.^[6]
• Reuters (30 October): crypto prices fell after Binance reported a potential security issue and said more than $2.5 bn in assets had been frozen.^[4]
• Per Reuters, citing CoinGecko, bitcoin dropped to a six-week low of $77,646, ether to a two-month low of $2,238.76, and BNB was down more than 8% over 24 hours at $694.^[4]
• CNBC reports bitcoin fell more than 4% to $77,994.96 on Friday, after breaking below $80,000.^[5]
• CNBC says Binance has not explicitly confirmed that a hack occurred. A Binance spokesperson said user funds remained safe.^[5]
• CNBC says crypto firms including Circle and Tether froze a combined $2.54 bn linked to the suspected incident, and that Arkham Intelligence identified nearly $6 bn across 55 wallet addresses potentially associated with it.^[5]

التبعات

• مؤكدBitcoin fell to a six-week low on 30 October, and Reuters and CNBC link the drop to Binance's security issue.
• مؤكدThe Fed held rates with two votes for a hike, and US inflation rose in September.
• قراءتناBefore the Binance news, rate-rise worries and weak tech shares gave bitcoin little support.
• قراءتناUntil Binance gives full details, crypto prices may move with each new report about the incident.

لا يزال مجهولًا

• How much was lost, and whether Binance will confirm a hack.
• How much of the fall comes from the Binance news and how much from rate and inflation worries.
• Whether the Fed will raise rates in December. The CME FedWatch figure is a market estimate, not a decision.

من يتأثر

World, Europe, Asia. Anyone who checked the bitcoin price today, and people who keep crypto on exchanges

المصادر

1. Federal Reserve Board: Federal Reserve issues FOMC statement 28 أكتوبر 2026 · رسمي
2. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis: Personal Income and Outlays, September 2026 29 أكتوبر 2026 · رسمي
3. Investing.com: Bitcoin vlak op $80.000 door havikachtige Fed en hogere inflatiecijfers · إعلام
4. Reuters: Bitcoin, cryptocurrency prices fall after Binance reports security issue 30 أكتوبر 2026 · إعلام
5. CNBC: Bitcoin tumbles below $78,000, extending losses as Binance security scare rattles crypto markets 30 أكتوبر 2026 · إعلام
6. Zonebourse (MT Newswires): Les principales cryptomonnaies reculent ; le bitcoin passe sous le seuil des 81 000 dollars 29 أكتوبر 2026 · إعلام