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The cryptocurrency market on November 10, 2025, is navigating a period of heightened volatility and macroeconomic uncertainty, with a prevailing ‘risk-off’ sentiment influencing investor behavior. The global crypto market capitalization has seen a notable decline, dropping to approximately $3.39 trillion, extending a week-long downturn of 7.65%. This cautious mood is reflected in the Fear & Greed Index, which has plunged to 24, indicating ‘Extreme Fear’—its lowest point since March 2025.

Market Dynamics and Key Assets Bitcoin (BTC) continues to consolidate, trading around the $102,000 to $104,000 range. Despite some short-term bullish forecasts suggesting a test of the $105,605 resistance level, bearish indicators persist, with a critical support level identified at $98,898. Institutional outflows from Bitcoin ETFs have been significant, with $558 million in net outflows recorded in a single day, signaling a broader portfolio de-risking trend ahead of year-end. Similarly, Ethereum (ETH) ETFs also experienced redemptions. The delay of the U.S. October Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, now anticipated on November 13, is a significant factor contributing to the prevailing market indecision. This macro uncertainty, coupled with a 20% slump since early October, has effectively erased most of the crypto market’s gains for 2025.

Regulatory Landscape Evolves Globally Regulatory frameworks worldwide are rapidly advancing, with several key developments unfolding. Hong Kong has expanded access for licensed virtual asset trading platforms (VATPs), permitting them to share order books with overseas affiliates and relaxing listing requirements for certain virtual assets. In Canada, the government has announced plans to regulate fiat-backed stablecoins, designating the Bank of Canada as the supervisory authority. The UK has initiated consultations on stablecoin rules, aiming for alignment with U.S. regulations by the end of 2026. The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is also developing plans to support tokenization and consulting on rules for regulated crypto asset activities.

Across the Atlantic, the U.S. saw the passage of the ‘Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act of 2025’ (GENIUS Act), which provides a more structured regulatory framework for stablecoins. Additionally, the U.S. Treasury Department is reportedly providing tax breaks to crypto firms without new legislation. In contrast, European Union supervisory authorities issued a joint warning to consumers, highlighting the inherent risks of crypto assets and clarifying that legal protections under MiCA may be limited for unregulated services.

Ethereum Ecosystem and DeFi Challenges The Ethereum ecosystem is a hotbed of activity. On November 5, seven major Ethereum-based protocols, including Aave Labs and Uniswap Foundation, formed the Ethereum Protocol Advocacy Alliance (EPAA) to coordinate policy efforts with global regulators. Meanwhile, large Ethereum holders, often referred to as ‘whales,’ have shown renewed confidence by accumulating over 400,000 ETH in a few days, contributing to a 6.78% price increase for ETH to $3,448.64. The network’s staking queue faces a significant backlog, with 1.5 million ETH waiting to enter validation, underscoring strong institutional interest and capital inflows. Looking ahead, the Fusaka upgrade, scheduled for December 3, aims to enhance Ethereum’s scalability and reduce gas costs through improved data availability.

The Decentralized Finance (DeFi) sector, however, is grappling with significant instability. Total Value Locked (TVL) in DeFi projects plummeted by $22 billion over the past week, reversing earlier gains. This downturn is largely attributed to macroeconomic concerns and a series of high-impact security breaches. A prominent incident involved the Balancer V2 Composable Stable Pools, which suffered an exploit on November 3, resulting in losses estimated between $116 million and $128 million. Another protocol, Stream Finance, suspended withdrawals after disclosing a $93 million loss, leading to its stablecoin, xUSD, losing its peg.

NFT Market and Altcoin Movements The Non-Fungible Token (NFT) market has also experienced a contraction, with transaction volume falling by 9.22% to $85.31 million in the past week, alongside a sharp decline in both buyers and sellers. The total NFT market capitalization decreased by 46% by early November. Despite the broader slowdown, new collections like Foxy Clan and Aqua-Cyber-Legends launched on November 10, reflecting continued innovation within the space, with emerging trends focusing on fractional NFTs and DeFi integration.

In the broader altcoin market, while major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum remain range-bound, some smaller altcoins have seen significant movements. SOON surged by 185% this week, followed by Internet Computer (ICP) with a 70% rally driven by its AI platform launch, and Filecoin (FIL) with a 54% gain. Conversely, tokens like SPX6900 (SPX) and Bittensor (TAO) experienced considerable declines. The altcoin market’s struggle to breach the $1.6 trillion market cap resistance has tempered hopes for a widespread ‘altseason’. Nevertheless, analysts point to altcoins such as Solana (SOL), Sui (SUI), Algorand (ALGO), and Arbitrum (ARB) as having strong fundamentals and utility, potentially positioning them for future growth.