Crypto markets fell on 15 October after a hotter-than-expected US inflation report pushed Bitcoin back below $81,000. BTC traded at $80,909.13, down 3.09% over 24 hours, while ETH fell 5.88% to $2,357.84.
Top Story
Consumer prices for September rose 0.6% month over month and 3.7% year over year, against 3.6% expected. Core CPI rose 0.3% monthly and 2.6% annually, against 2.5% expected. CNBC attributed the headline increase to gasoline prices.
The print hit a market already sensitive to Federal Reserve policy. The Fed raised rates 25 basis points on 17 September to a 3.75–4.00% target range. Before the release, CME FedWatch showed October hike odds near 22%. They jumped to about 43% after the print and later eased to roughly 26–30%, according to CoinDesk. The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 5.29% from 5.19%.
Bitcoin fell from about $83,860 to $82,731 within five minutes of the 8:30 a.m. ET release. It later dropped to near $81,500. Liquidations were heavily one-sided: $143.81M in BTC positions and $215.35M in ETH positions were wiped out over 24 hours. Longs made up 91.0% of BTC liquidations and 93.9% of ETH liquidations. The Fear & Greed Index fell to 52, which is neutral.
The next data points are the September producer price index on 15 October and a speech by Fed Chair Waller at the IMF Annual Meetings in Bangkok on 16 October.
Major Price Moves
Gains were concentrated in small and mid caps. Walrus rose 19.90% on $315.43M of volume, the largest turnover among the top gainers. Nillion added 11.84% on $62.37M, and DUSK gained 13.11%.
Puffer was the largest verified mover. Upbit listed it on its Korean won market on 15 October, and sources report a move of more than 240% on Upbit's BTC market. Figures differ across sources, so the 101.06% screen figure should be treated with caution. Commander Vrax rose on social mentions from Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, but sources disagree on the size of the move.
The screen also showed Stellar Synthetic USD up 9,683.77%. No source confirms that move, so this article excludes it.
Losses were led by Bitway, which the screen showed down 23.59%. Other sources report a record high of $2.75 on 14 October and a pullback to $2.45, so that drop is unconfirmed. Optimism also appeared in the losers list at -15.18%, yet other reports show it rallying on 13 and 14 October.
Among the top 20 by market cap, Zcash fell 12.69% and Chainlink dropped 6.54%. Dogecoin lost 6.22%, XRP fell 5.05%, and Solana declined 4.80%. Tron was flat.
Other Key Events
Ledger signer implant
Ledger's Donjon team found an unauthorized implant in a Ledger signer sold by reseller CryptoBilis. The device reads 24-word recovery phrases during setup and sends them over LTE through an eSIM. Ledger confirmed the implant on 13 October and says all verified losses involved devices bought through CryptoBilis, which suspended sales. Loss estimates range from $93.2M across 300 wallets to $102.0M across 324 wallets. Ledger says its own systems show no breach. Reported cases in Germany and Singapore remain unverified.
Spot Bitcoin ETF flows reversed
US spot Bitcoin ETFs took in $175.6M on 13 October, their best day of the month, and Ether ETFs added $24.8M. The trend reversed on 14 October, when Bitcoin ETFs recorded $150.5M in outflows. Month to date, Bitcoin ETFs are down $278.4M across nine trading days.
In Brief
- Autheo token THEO fell 92% after 19 million unauthorized tokens were minted on Base. Autheo told holders not to buy, sell, or bridge.
- Thailand's SEC finalized rules for spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs on the Stock Exchange of Thailand. Trading starts 16 October.
- The Pando Solana ETF began trading in Hong Kong on 13 October.
- The CLARITY Act failed a Senate cloture vote on 15 September, short of the 60 votes needed.
What to Watch
- Bitcoin at $81,000: BTC closed below this level on 15 October. A reclaim would ease pressure from the CPI sell-off.
- Bitcoin ETF flows: Month-to-date outflows total $278.4M. Daily flow data will show whether institutional demand returns.
- Token unlocks: About 1.56% of ARB's circulating supply, worth roughly $18.4M, unlocks on 16 October. ASTER, CRO and DBR unlock on 17 October.
- Waller speech: The Fed Chair speaks on 16 October at the IMF meetings in Bangkok.
- FOMC decision: The meeting is scheduled for 28 October, with some sources citing 27–28 October.