Crypto Market Sees Broad Decline Amid Extreme Fear and Regulatory Constraints on December 18, 2025
The crypto market capitalization declined by 1.5% to $3.01 trillion, with 95 of the top 100 coins showing losses. The 24-hour trading volume was approximately $129 billion. Notable declines included Bitcoin (BTC) falling 0.3% to $86,722, Ethereum (ETH) dropping 3.9% to $2,834, Dogecoin (DOGE) down 5% to $0.1245, and XRP decreasing 4.6% to $1.84.
Bitcoin's volatility has cooled to levels below Nvidia's in 2025, according to Bitwise, indicating a maturing investor base. Despite recent losses, BTC's price pattern is anchored to an $84,000 cost basis, with potential for a move above $140,000 within 180 days. Analysts suggest a 10–15% rise in the cost basis could push BTC targets to between $138,000 and $148,000. Derive.xyz's Nick Forster noted bearish positioning, with calls clustered at $100,000 and $120,000 and puts at $85,000. The probability of BTC hitting $100,000 by December expiry is approximately 30%, with about a 10% chance to reclaim its all-time high. ETH has roughly a 45% chance to reach $3,000 by the end of Q1 and a 25% chance to exceed $4,000.
On the investment front, BTC spot ETFs recorded $457.29 million in inflows on the day, contributing to a total BTC ETF net inflow of $57.73 billion. Significant contributors included BlackRock with $111.17 million and Fidelity with $391.49 million in inflows, whereas Ark & 21Shares and Bitwise saw outflows of $36.96 million and $8.41 million, respectively. Conversely, US ETH ETFs posted $22.43 million in outflows, lowering the total ETH ETF net inflow to $12.62 billion, with BlackRock and Fidelity experiencing outflows of $19.61 million and $2.81 million, respectively.
Regulatory developments in Russia continue to impact the market, as Russian official Anatoly Aksakov reaffirmed the strict ban on crypto payments, emphasizing that cryptocurrencies cannot serve as money and that rubles must be used for payments.
In market sentiment, the crypto fear and greed index remained low at 22, indicating extreme fear among investors.
Additionally, Coinbase announced an expansion into stocks, advanced trading, and built-in prediction markets through a partnership with Kalshi. The new stock trading features will be available to users in the United States.
