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# Why bitcoin is falling: five-day slide to $80,000 amid ETF outflows
- URL: https://bullquill.com/bitcoin-five-day-losing-streak/
- Published: 2026-10-27T01:10:18.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-27T01:27:50.000Z
- Description: Coinbase daily candles show bitcoin closing lower every day from Oct. 22 to Oct. 26, from $84,024.67 to $80,008.79. Reports also point to caution before the Federal Reserve's Oct. 28 decision and oil prices near six-month highs.
- Author: Rowan Ashby
- Tags: Crypto, Trending, Bitcoin, Bitcoin ETF, Federal Reserve, Oil, #lang-en, #tr-bitcoin-five-day-losing-streak

## Key takeaways

- Bitcoin fell for five straight daily sessions from Oct. 22 to Oct. 26, 2026, sliding from $84,024.67 to $80,008.79 on Coinbase, a drop of about 4.8% (data as of 01:00 UTC, Oct. 27).
- On Yahoo Finance's aggregated feed the Oct. 26 close was $79,746, just under the round $80,000 level; on Coinbase it was just above. In practice, bitcoin spent the session pinned to $80,000.
- The causes most cited by market reports were $773.5 million of US spot bitcoin ETF outflows on Oct. 22 and 23, according to Farside Investors data, caution before the Federal Reserve decision on Oct. 28, and oil prices near six-month highs.
- The price sits below its 50-day moving average but well above its 200-day average, and about 36% above its June 30 low.

Bitcoin has fallen for five straight days, from $84,024.67 to $80,008.79 on Coinbase between Oct. 22 and Oct. 26\. Why is bitcoin falling? Market reports cite $773.5 million of spot ETF outflows, caution before the Fed's Oct. 28 decision and oil near six-month highs.

Each day's loss was small after a sharp 3.2% drop on Oct. 22, but together they amount to the longest losing run of the month. The move takes bitcoin back to a level it already tested on Oct. 15 and Oct. 24, as Bullquill reported in [why Bitcoin fell below $80,000 on Oct. 24](https://bullquill.com/why-bitcoin-fell-below-80000/).

## Why is bitcoin falling? The trend in numbers

The table below uses two independent data sets. Daily closes come from Coinbase Exchange, which closes its daily candles at 00:00 UTC. The longer-term measures (moving averages and 52-week range) come from Yahoo Finance's BTC-USD daily series. The two feeds differ slightly because they sample different venues and times.

| Measure                   | Value                                       | Source, data as of               |
| ------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------- |
| Close, Oct. 21            | $84,024.67                                  | Coinbase, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27      |
| Close, Oct. 22            | $81,307.16 (-3.23%)                         | Coinbase, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27      |
| Close, Oct. 23            | $81,078.04 (-0.28%)                         | Coinbase, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27      |
| Close, Oct. 24            | $80,769.67 (-0.38%)                         | Coinbase, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27      |
| Close, Oct. 25            | $80,053.16 (-0.89%)                         | Coinbase, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27      |
| Close, Oct. 26            | $80,008.79 (-0.06%)                         | Coinbase, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27      |
| Oct. 26 intraday low      | $79,255                                     | Coinbase, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27      |
| Five-session change       | \-4.78% (Coinbase); -5.08% (Yahoo)          | 01:00 UTC Oct. 27                |
| 20-session change         | \-6.47% (Coinbase); -6.79% (Yahoo)          | 01:00 UTC Oct. 27                |
| Oct. 26 close, aggregated | $79,746                                     | Yahoo Finance, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27 |
| 50-day moving average     | $81,793                                     | Yahoo Finance, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27 |
| 200-day moving average    | $72,985                                     | Yahoo Finance, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27 |
| 52-week closing high      | $114,119 (Oct. 27, 2025); price 30.1% below | Yahoo Finance, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27 |
| 52-week closing low       | $58,559 (June 30, 2026); price 36.2% above  | Yahoo Finance, 01:00 UTC Oct. 27 |

Two points stand out. First, the streak is real on both feeds: every daily close from Oct. 22 to Oct. 26 was lower than the one before. Second, the "below $80,000" part depends on the data source. Coinbase's Oct. 26 close was about $9 above the level and Yahoo's was about $254 below it. Bitcoin is sitting on the line, not clearly through it.

The 52-week high in Yahoo's data falls on the first day of the trailing window, Oct. 27, 2025\. Bitcoin's all-time peak came earlier that month, and CoinDesk has described the decline since October 2025 as a bear market.

## Why it is happening

### Spot ETF outflows reversed an early-week rally

The biggest single driver named in reports was money leaving US spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds. According to Farside Investors data cited by [CoinDesk](https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2026/10/23/live-updates-bitcoin-holds-above-usd81-000-as-the-ai-rout-fades-and-oil-climbs?ref=bullquill.com), the funds saw about $635 million of net outflows on Oct. 22, the largest daily outflow since June 25\. Coinspeaker, in a report carried by Yahoo Finance, said a further $137.9 million left on Oct. 23 and that BlackRock's IBIT and Fidelity's FBTC led the redemptions on both days.

The selling followed a strong start to the week. Farside data compiled by [Pintu Academy](https://pintu.co.id/en/academy/post/crypto-market-analysis-today-october-26-2026?ref=bullquill.com) show inflows of $526.7 million on Oct. 19, $23.2 million on Oct. 20 and $524.8 million on Oct. 21, about $1.07 billion in total. The two days of outflows erased more than two-thirds of that. CoinDesk also noted that bitcoin was trading below the average cost basis of US spot ETF buyers, which it put at $82,313\. Flow figures for Oct. 26 had not been published when this article was written. For how these numbers are compiled, see Bullquill's guide to [bitcoin ETF flows](https://bullquill.com/bitcoin-etf-flows-explained/).

### Caution before the Fed decision on Oct. 28

The Federal Reserve's policy meeting runs Oct. 27 to 28, with the decision on Wednesday. The Motley Fool reported on Oct. 26 that traders were "reducing their exposure" ahead of the decision. According to Pintu Academy, CME FedWatch data priced a 90.6% chance of a hold, while Coinspeaker cited Polymarket odds of 94.5% for a hold. Pintu also reported that markets were pricing a meaningful chance of a rate hike in December. A hold is widely expected, so attention is on Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's press conference, Coinspeaker said. Bullquill explains the link between rates and crypto prices in [how Fed rate decisions affect bitcoin](https://bullquill.com/how-fed-rate-decisions-affect-bitcoin/).

### Oil, the Middle East and a weak day for tech stocks

Brent crude rose above $116 a barrel on Oct. 23, its highest since late April, CoinDesk reported, and called oil "the worry" because it complicates the inflation outlook before the Fed meeting. Pintu Academy gave a Brent close of $116.72 that day. On Oct. 24 bitcoin briefly fell below $80,000 after reports that the US was evacuating personnel from Middle East posts, according to CoinDesk. By Oct. 26, Coinspeaker said, Brent had eased to near $110.

The sharp first leg of the streak, on Oct. 22, coincided with a sell-off in technology shares. CoinDesk reported that the Nasdaq 100 had its worst day since June as the AI trade struggled, and Pintu Academy linked the drop to renewed AI spending worries after Meta's plans. Neither source showed that tech selling directly caused bitcoin's decline, so the link should be read as correlation, not a confirmed cause.

### Leverage was cleared out on the way down

Coinspeaker reported about $820 million in liquidations after Saturday's drop, mostly long positions, and said funding rates had returned to a neutral 0.01% every eight hours on OKX and Hyperliquid. Liquidations amplify moves but do not explain why selling began. Bullquill's explainer on [crypto liquidations](https://bullquill.com/crypto-liquidations-explained/) covers how they work.

## Key levels being watched

These are levels named by other market reports, not Bullquill forecasts:

- **$80,000:** the round number the market is testing. The Motley Fool said investors should watch "whether Bitcoin can defend the $80,000 zone."
- **$80,000 to $82,000:** described by Singapore-based trading firm QCP Capital as an accumulation zone, according to COINTURK NEWS.
- **$78,000:** the "max pain" strike for Friday's monthly options expiry. Coinspeaker put the expiry at about 135,700 BTC, worth roughly $10.9 billion.
- **About $75,400 to $75,600:** Pintu Academy cited the 100-day simple moving average near $75,600\. Coinspeaker cited Strategy's average purchase cost of $75,446 per bitcoin.
- **About $73,000:** the 200-day moving average, consistent with Yahoo's figure of $72,985.

## What we know and what we don't know yet

**We know** that bitcoin closed lower five days running on both Coinbase and Yahoo data, and that spot ETFs recorded about $773.5 million of net outflows on Oct. 22 and 23\. We also know the Fed decision is due on Oct. 28, and that Coinbase and Strategy report earnings on Thursday, Oct. 29, according to Coinspeaker.

**We don't know** the ETF flow figures for Oct. 26 or how much of the outflow came from long-term holders versus hedged trading strategies. No single cause has been confirmed for the late-week drift lower. The reports cite several overlapping pressures, and their exact weight cannot be measured from public data.

## What it means

The streak is a slow grind, not a crash: after the 3.2% drop on Oct. 22, the following four sessions together cost less than 2%. That pattern fits a market waiting for a catalyst. Bitcoin now sits between its 50-day average above and its 200-day average below, and it trades under the average cost of ETF buyers, according to CoinDesk's estimate.

The next few days bring three scheduled tests: the Fed decision and press conference on Oct. 28, Coinbase and Strategy earnings on Oct. 29, and the large options expiry on Oct. 30\. Fresh ETF flow data will show whether the late-week outflows continued or were a one-off reversal. For the day-by-day picture, see the [crypto daily brief for Oct. 26](https://bullquill.com/crypto-daily-brief-2026-10-26/).

## Frequently asked questions

### Why is bitcoin falling this week?

Market reports point to three pressures: about $773.5 million of net outflows from US spot bitcoin ETFs on Oct. 22 and 23, 2026 (Farside Investors data), caution before the Federal Reserve decision on Oct. 28, and Brent crude near $116 on Oct. 23\. No single cause has been confirmed.

### How many days in a row has bitcoin fallen?

Five. Coinbase daily closes fell every day from Oct. 22 to Oct. 26, 2026, from $84,024.67 on Oct. 21 to $80,008.79 on Oct. 26, a drop of about 4.8%.

### Did bitcoin close below $80,000 on Oct. 26?

It depends on the data feed. Yahoo Finance's aggregated BTC-USD close was $79,746, while Coinbase's daily candle closed at $80,008.79\. Either way, bitcoin ended the day right at the $80,000 level.

### When is the next Fed decision?

The Federal Reserve's meeting runs Oct. 27 to 28, 2026, with the decision on Wednesday, Oct. 28\. CME FedWatch data cited by Pintu Academy showed a 90.6% chance of a hold.

This article is for information only and is not investment advice.