Nasdaq Just Entered a Correction and Dragged Bitcoin Below $77,000 — But BTC Fell Less Than Chip Stocks: 5 Numbers That Decide $76,500 or $80,500

The Correction Arrived in Tech Stocks First — Bitcoin Just Got Dragged Along

The Nasdaq 100 is down 10% from its October peak, officially in a technical correction. A gauge of US chipmakers has crashed 12% in just three days. South Korea's Kospi fell more than 3% overnight. And Bitcoin? It slipped just 2%, to just under $77,000. Read that again: the asset famous for violent crashes is, this week, the calm one. The selloff crushing markets on November 3, 2026 is not a crypto crisis. It is a tech-valuation crisis, and Bitcoin is collateral damage — which changes everything about how traders should play the next few days.

Bitcoin traded near $77,000 on Tuesday morning in Asia, erasing Monday's rebound, while ether held just above $2,250 and the total crypto market capitalization slipped to about $2.67 trillion. The Fear and Greed Index dropped to 26, deep in "Fear" territory, down from 37 the day before and 48 a week ago. Yet the numbers that matter most are not crypto numbers at all. The Nasdaq 100's 10% fall from its peak, the chip index's 12% three-day rout, and the S&P 500's comparatively modest 0.5% slip tell the real story: investors are repricing artificial-intelligence hype, not abandoning Bitcoin. Understanding that distinction is the difference between panic-selling a dip and buying one.

This article breaks down what actually happened on November 3, why chip stocks started it, how far Bitcoin could fall if tech keeps sliding, and the five numbers that will decide whether BTC holds $76,500 or reclaims $80,500 before Friday's jobs report. All figures are sourced from market coverage published today; predictions are labelled as predictions, not guarantees.

What Happened on November 3: A Market-by-Market Breakdown

The pain started on Wall Street on Monday and rolled into Asia overnight. A gauge of US chipmakers extended a three-day rout to 12%, the Nasdaq 100 sank 10% from its peak to enter a technical correction, and the S&P 500 slipped 0.5%. South Korea's tech-heavy Kospi slid more than 3%, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped almost 1%. Americans vote in the midterm elections on Tuesday, with the first results arriving as Asian markets open on Wednesday, adding a layer of political uncertainty to an already nervous market.

In crypto, Bitcoin fell 2% to just under $77,000 in Tuesday Asian trading, wiping out Monday's bounce and dipping below the roughly $77,600 level it touched late Sunday. Ether fell about 2% to just above $2,250, Solana dropped 3% to about $92, BNB slipped below $700, and Dogecoin fell about 2%. ZEC took the worst of it among majors, tumbling nearly 10% to about $1,140, while HYPE fell 5% to about $84. XRP barely moved at $1.25, and TRON was the only major in the green, up about 2%. The broad crypto market shed roughly 3.3% in 24 hours by some measures, wiping out around $88 billion in value, with total market capitalization near $2.6 trillion.

Two other markets tell you this is a rotation, not a panic. Gold rose nearly 2% but failed to reclaim $4,000 — a haven bid, but a hesitant one. And the Dow Jones Industrial Average actually rose 0.4% to 0.6% while the Nasdaq fell, as money rotated out of expensive tech names and into steadier stocks.

Why Chip Stocks Started It: The AI Trade Is Being Repriced

The proximate cause is an AI trade that ran too far, too fast. Investors are showing less tolerance for technology companies whose core businesses are slowing even as AI spending surges. Disappointing earnings from tech giants triggered the worst stock selloff since June on Friday, with the Nasdaq 100 tumbling 3.5% and briefly entering a technical correction, Intel suffering its steepest drop in more than four decades, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunging 7.2% in a single session.

Monday added fresh fuel. Chipmaker Marvell Technology plunged 12.7% after announcing it would acquire optical component maker Lumentum in an all-stock deal valued at approximately $115 billion including debt. Ciena fell 11%, Intel dropped nearly 9%, and Seagate Technology slid 8%. Among large-cap tech names, Apple slid 1.83% ahead of its earnings, Microsoft fell 2.83%, Meta dropped 1.34%, and Nvidia declined 1.26%, while Amazon rose 2.2% and Tesla gained 1%. Anthropic disclosed a twelve-fold increase in quarterly revenue while revealing it intends to spend more than $895 billion in the years ahead — a number that thrilled AI believers and terrified investors worried about returns on that spending, in equal measure.

That tension is the whole story. Results from Alphabet and Amazon fueled concerns that AI is eroding the very businesses financing those investments. The Cboe Volatility Index touched its highest intraday level since April, demand for puts protecting against further losses surged, and correlations among stocks climbed — classic signs of mounting stress. Yet those measures remain well below the levels reached in March after the US and Israel attacked Iran, which is why seasoned traders are calling this a correction, not a crisis. A 10% pullback in an index that had been priced for AI perfection is painful, but it is also normal market function.

Bitcoin vs the Markets: The Comparison Table That Changes the Story

Put the day's moves side by side and the narrative flips. Bitcoin did not lead this selloff — it trailed it, and by a smaller margin than the sector that caused it.

Market / Asset	Move on Nov 2–3	What it means
US chipmakers gauge	-12% in 3 days	The epicentre of the selloff
Nasdaq 100	-10% from October peak	Official technical correction
South Korea Kospi	-3%+ overnight	Asia tech contagion
Bitcoin (BTC)	-2% to ~$77,000	Dragged, not driving
Ether (ETH)	-2% to ~$2,250	Moving with BTC
S&P 500	-0.5%	Broad market holding up
Dow Jones	+0.4% to +0.6%	Rotation into value, not panic
Gold	+2%, below $4,000	Hesitant haven bid
WTI crude oil	-8% on Iran hopes	Geopolitical relief, separate story

The takeaway is uncomfortable for crypto bears and bulls alike. Bears cannot claim Bitcoin is collapsing on its own fundamentals: it fell a fraction of what chip stocks fell. Bulls cannot claim Bitcoin has decoupled from tech: it fell in lockstep, just less violently. The honest read is that Bitcoin remains a high-beta tech proxy in risk-off moments — but this week, its 2% drop against a 12% chip rout is a sign of relative resilience, not weakness. For context on how Bitcoin got to this level, see our earlier coverage of Bitcoin's fall below $77,000 on midterm morning and the $76,463 line that decides $75,000 or $83,000.

5 Numbers That Decide Whether Bitcoin Holds $76,500 or Reclaims $80,500

Forget narratives for a moment. These five sourced numbers are what traders are actually watching this week.

1. $76,500–$76,600: the support floor. Market coverage puts near-term support at $76,000–$76,600, with Bitcoin's intraday low touching the $76,500 zone before recovering. A daily close below $76,500 opens the path toward $75,000, and below that, the 200-day average near $73,212 becomes the longer-term structural reference. Holding $76,500 keeps the correction narrative intact; losing it turns this into a breakdown.

2. $79,500–$80,500: the resistance ceiling. The same coverage flags $79,500–$80,500 as the zone Bitcoin must reclaim to change the story, with the 50-day average near $80,307 as the first real test for buyers. A daily close above $80,307 would improve the short-term picture and could open a move toward $85,000. Until then, every bounce into that zone is a selling opportunity for traders who bought the AI top.

3. 26: the Fear and Greed Index. The index dropped to 26 on November 3, from 37 the previous day, 48 a week ago, and 65 a month ago — a slide from Greed to Fear in four weeks. Contrarians note that readings in the 20s have historically marked zones where sellers are exhausted rather than just getting started, but fear can stay extreme for weeks. The number matters less as a buy signal than as a sentiment gauge: the crowd is scared, and scared crowds sell rallies.

4. $365.9 million: 24-hour liquidations, 83.8% longs. CoinGlass reported $365.90 million in liquidations across 93,206 traders over 24 hours, with long liquidations accounting for $306.71 million — 83.8% of the total — against $59.19 million in shorts. Bitcoin liquidations reached $85.15 million, ether $54.21 million, and Solana $24.10 million.

5. 43.5%: midterm options volatility. Ahead of the midterm elections, implied volatility for BTC options expiring November 4 rose to approximately 43.5%, compared with around 36% for later expiries — traders are paying a premium to hedge election-driven moves. That premium tells you the market expects a sharp move around the results, but it does not tell you the direction. With US stock futures already ticking higher in early Asian trading, some investors are positioning to buy the dip if results bring clarity rather than chaos.

What Most People Get Wrong About This Drop

Myth 1: "Bitcoin is crashing because crypto is broken." Wrong. The $6.3 billion Binance hack in late October damaged confidence, and Binance's phased withdrawal reopening is still underway — its second phase began on Tuesday, expanding to Binance Smart Chain, Ethereum, Solana, XRP Ledger, Sui, Arbitrum, Optimism, Tron, and Base. But today's move was led by chip stocks, not crypto headlines. Brazil's Mercado Bitcoin also confirmed a security incident on November 2, with more than $40 million in suspicious transfers flagged across at least 10 blockchains and deposits and withdrawals suspended. Those are real security stories, and they add background anxiety, but neither caused a 12% chip rout. Do not confuse a bad week for exchanges with a bad day for tech valuations.

Myth 2: "A 10% Nasdaq correction means a bear market." Wrong. A correction is defined as a 10% fall from a recent high; a bear market is 20%. The Nasdaq 100 has just crossed the first line, not the second. The S&P 500 is down only 0.5%, the Dow is up, and most S&P 500 firms actually rose on Monday even as the index slipped.

Myth 3: "Fear at 26 means buy immediately." Misleading. Extreme fear marks opportunity zones over weeks and months, not a timing signal for Tuesday morning. Bitcoin's 14-period RSI near 40 sits below neutral without approaching the conventional oversold floor of 30, and its MACD remains negative. Fear plus weak momentum is a recipe for lower prices before any durable bottom forms.

Myth 4: "Bitcoin has decoupled from stocks." Not this week. When the Nasdaq 100 enters a correction and chip stocks fall 12% in three days, Bitcoin falls too — it just fell less.

Myth 5: "The midterms will decide everything." Overstated. The midterms matter for crypto, AI, and bank regulation over the next two years, and a change in congressional control could bring tougher oversight. But the nearer-term calendar is just as important: Apple earnings, South Korea's October CPI, and Friday's US jobs report — a report our earlier analysis flagged as moving Bitcoin roughly twice as much as Fed decisions. Election headlines will dominate Wednesday; the jobs report could dominate Friday.

Bull, Base and Bear: Three Scenarios for the Rest of the Week

Scenario	Trigger	Bitcoin target	Probability read
Bull: tech bounce	Midterm clarity + Apple earnings beat + chip rout exhausts	Reclaim $79,500–$80,500, toward $85,000	Needs a Nasdaq stabilisation first
Base: choppy range	Mixed election result, jobs report awaited, fear lingers	Trade $76,500–$80,500 sideways	Most likely near-term path
Bear: tech capitulation	Chip rout extends, Nasdaq breaks toward -15%, longs liquidate again	Lose $76,500, toward $75,000, then $73,212	Risk if support fails on volume

These are scenarios, not predictions. The base case — a choppy range between $76,500 and $80,500 — fits every data point today: fear is high but not panicked, leverage has been partially cleared, the Dow is holding up, and the two biggest scheduled catalysts (midterm results and Friday's payrolls) are still ahead. Traders should plan for the range and react to a break of either edge, rather than betting the farm on a single outcome.

What Traders Should Actually Do Now: A 6-Point Checklist

None of this is financial advice. It is a risk checklist for a week when tech stocks, politics, and jobs data collide.

1. Watch $76,500 on a daily close, not an intraday wick. Intraday dips below support that recover by the close are noise; closes below it are signal.
2. Do not chase the first green bounce into $79,500–$80,500. That zone is packed with sellers from the last two weeks. Let a close above $80,307 confirm strength first.
3. Size positions for a volatility spike. With November 4 options volatility at 43.5%, moves of 3–5% in a day are normal this week, not exceptional.
4. Separate exchange risk from market risk. If your coins sit on an exchange, the Binance and Mercado Bitcoin incidents are your reminder to review custody. Our guides to the best crypto wallets for beginners and how to store crypto safely cover cold storage and seed-phrase basics.
5. Keep dry powder for Friday. The jobs report lands November 6 and has historically moved Bitcoin more than Fed decisions. Spending everything before it is the week's most common mistake.
6. Zoom out before deciding. Bitcoin is down 2% on the day and roughly 4% across four straight red weeks, but it still trades above its 200-day average near $73,212. If you are new to the asset, start with what Bitcoin actually is and how to buy Bitcoin safely before trading a correction.

Why This Correction Could Be Healthy — If Tech Stops Falling

Corrections serve a purpose: they strip froth from the assets that ran hardest. The AI trade's problem was never that AI is unimportant — Anthropic's twelve-fold revenue growth proves the demand is real — but that share prices assumed flawless execution and instant returns on nearly $900 billion of planned spending. A 10% Nasdaq pullback reprices that assumption without breaking the thesis. If chip stocks stabilise near current levels and Apple earnings reassure, Bitcoin's 2% dip will look like a footnote.

The risk is the opposite path. If the chip rout extends from 12% toward 20%, if the Nasdaq's correction deepens, and if midterm results add regulatory uncertainty rather than clarity, Bitcoin's $76,500 floor will be tested with real force — and the $365.9 million liquidation wave shows how quickly forced selling can turn a test into a break. The market's message today is neither euphoric nor apocalyptic. It is a warning to respect the levels: $76,500 below, $80,500 above, and Friday's jobs report as the tiebreaker.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Bitcoin falling today?

Bitcoin fell about 2% to just under $77,000 on November 3, 2026, mainly because a rout in US chip stocks — down 12% in three days — dragged the Nasdaq 100 into a 10% technical correction and pushed global markets into risk-off mode ahead of the US midterm elections. Crypto-specific news, including exchange security incidents, added background anxiety but did not cause the tech selloff.

What is a stock market correction?

A correction is a fall of 10% or more from a recent high. The Nasdaq 100 has now fallen 10% from its October peak, meeting that definition. A bear market, by contrast, requires a 20% fall. Corrections are common and do not automatically signal a prolonged downturn.

Is Bitcoin decoupling from the stock market?

Not this week. Bitcoin fell alongside tech stocks, though by less (2% versus 12% for chip stocks). Over longer periods, Bitcoin's correlation with equities varies, but during sharp risk-off moves it has historically traded in the same direction as tech stocks.

What are the key Bitcoin price levels to watch?

Support sits at $76,000–$76,600, with $76,500 the line to watch on a daily close. Resistance sits at $79,500–$80,500, with the 50-day average near $80,307 as the first confirmation level for buyers. Below support, $75,000 and then the 200-day average near $73,212 come into play; above resistance, $85,000 is the next target zone.

What does the Fear and Greed Index at 26 mean?

A reading of 26 signals "Fear." The index fell from 37 the previous day, 48 a week ago, and 65 (Greed) a month ago. Extreme fear often appears near market lows over longer timeframes, but it is a sentiment gauge, not a precise timing signal, and fear can persist for weeks.

Should I buy Bitcoin during this dip?

That depends on your time horizon, risk tolerance, and financial situation — this article is not financial advice. Short-term traders are watching the $76,500 support and $80,500 resistance levels, while long-term buyers often use strategies like dollar-cost averaging rather than trying to catch an exact bottom during a volatile week. Anyone new to crypto should learn the basics first and never invest money they cannot afford to lose.

Conclusion

November 3, 2026 will be remembered as the day the Nasdaq entered a correction — and Bitcoin proved it could take a punch from Wall Street without falling apart. A 12% chip rout, a 10% Nasdaq drawdown, a 3% Kospi slide, and Bitcoin down just 2% to $77,000: that is not a crypto crash, it is a tech correction with crypto caught in the downdraft. The levels are now clear — hold $76,500 or slide toward $75,000 and $73,212; reclaim $80,500 or stay trapped in a fearful range. The midterms, Apple earnings, and Friday's jobs report will decide which path wins. Until then, respect the range, size for volatility, keep your coins in custody you control, and remember that the calmest asset on a chaotic screen is sometimes the one worth watching closest. Sources: CoinDesk, KuCoin Daily Market Report, Bloomberg Markets Wrap via Swissinfo, CoinGabbar, Traders Union on Binance's second withdrawal phase.