--- title: "Bitcoin falls below $81,500 as tech sell-off spreads to Asian equities" description: "The Block reported that bitcoin slid below $81,500 as a Wall Street sell-off carried into Asian equities, with South Korea's Kospi down 2.3% and Japan's Nikkei 225 down 1.6% in Friday morning trading. The report follows earlier coverage of bitcoin trading near $81,500 and broader declines in…" language: en canonical: "https://whycoinmoves.com/en/events/bitcoin-bitcoin-slides-below-81-500-38219e10defa88" published: 2026-10-23T02:22:45.000Z updated: 2026-10-23T03:23:02.000Z indexable: false --- # Bitcoin falls below $81,500 as tech sell-off spreads to Asian equities The Block reported that bitcoin slid below $81,500 as a Wall Street sell-off carried into Asian equities, with South Korea's Kospi down 2.3% and Japan's Nikkei 225 down 1.6% in Friday morning trading. The report follows earlier coverage of bitcoin trading near $81,500 and broader declines in… Attributed sources: [The Block]() ## Key facts The Block reported that bitcoin slid below $81,500 as a Wall Street sell-off carried into Asian equities, with South Korea's Kospi down 2.3% and Japan's Nikkei 225 down 1.6% in Friday morning trading. The report follows earlier coverage of bitcoin trading near $81,500 and broader declines in equities and DeFi tokens. Evidence strength: Single source, 1 publisher group(s) (The Block); this describes source coverage, not truth or causation. After site detection, observed returns were 5 minutes: +0.04% (23/10/2026, 02:22 → 23/10/2026, 02:27, UTC; Gate · USDT); 1 hour: +0.22% (23/10/2026, 02:22 → 23/10/2026, 03:22, UTC; Gate · USDT). Unlisted windows are unavailable. In the preceding 30 days, the 99th percentile of absolute hourly returns was 1.23% (OKX · USDT; cutoff 23/10/2026, 02:22, UTC). This hourly baseline is not directly comparable with a minute move. ## Returns after site detection | Window | Return | BTC | Difference from BTC | Actual sampled interval (UTC) | Source | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 5 minutes | +0.04% | +0.04% | 0.00 pp | 23/10/2026, 02:22 → 23/10/2026, 02:27 | Gate · USDT | | 1 hour | +0.22% | +0.22% | 0.00 pp | 23/10/2026, 02:22 → 23/10/2026, 03:22 | Gate · USDT | | 24 hours | — | — | — | — | — | ## Historical hourly baseline | Metric | Value | | --- | --- | | Ready | true | | Coverage | 100.0% (720/720) | | Median absolute hourly return | 0.15% | | 99th percentile of absolute hourly returns | 1.23% | | BTC beta | 1.00 | | Source / cutoff (UTC) | OKX · USDT / 23/10/2026, 02:22 | ## Claims and open questions - The Block reported that bitcoin slid below $81,500 as the Wall Street sell-off extended to Asian equities. - The Block reported South Korea's Kospi was down 2.3% and Japan's Nikkei 225 was down 1.6% on Friday morning. - What specific catalyst drove the tech-stock sell-off that The Block links to the move? - How much of the decline in bitcoin trading volumes and derivatives positioning is confirmed by exchange or on-chain data, rather than described in reporting? ## Source evidence - [Bitcoin slides below $81,500 as tech stock sell-off spreads to Asian equities]() — The Block; published 23/10/2026, 02:21; received 23/10/2026, 02:22 (UTC). ## Recent BTC events and market reactions - [US spot bitcoin ETFs return to net outflows with $636 million withdrawn]() — Published 23/10/2026, 07:09 (UTC) · Multiple publishers (2 publishers) · Market watch · 5m -0.02% / 1h +0.13% - [Chinese court accepts prosecutors' bid to confiscate Bitcoin seized in UK]() — Published 22/10/2026, 06:24 (UTC) · Multiple publishers (3 publishers) · General news · 5m -0.02% / 1h -0.41% / 24h -0.94% - [US spot Bitcoin ETFs take in about $1.07 billion over three sessions]() — Published 22/10/2026, 04:41 (UTC) · Multiple publishers (3 publishers) · Market watch · 5m +0.05% / 1h +0.07% / 24h -1.31% - [Bitcoin slips below $82K after Tesla and Meta results unsettle tech markets]() — Published 22/10/2026, 03:51 (UTC) · Multiple publishers (2 publishers) · Market watch · 5m +0.13% / 1h +0.04% / 24h -1.04% - [Bitcoin rises above $84,500 as SpaceX earnings lift tech stocks]() — Published 21/10/2026, 15:13 (UTC) · Multiple publishers (2 publishers) · Market watch · 5m +0.15% / 1h +0.25% - [Full coin archive]() ## Research for this archive - [Altcoin beta to Bitcoin: BTC, ETH, SOL and DOGE hourly returns]() - [Perpetual funding rates and annualized yield: a 2025 comparison]() - [Bitcoin halving and bull markets: evidence from four halvings]() - [Bitcoin DCA vs lump sum: every start month since 2014]() [Methods and limitations]() Publisher count is not independent evidence count. Price changes cannot verify news or prove causation.