Bitcoin Rebounds Then Slips as Korean AI Selloff Hits Markets

Bitcoin (BTC) rebounded above $84,000 after falling below $81,000 Tuesday, but the recovery faded as heavy futures liquidations coincided with a sharp decline in South Korean technology shares.

Bitcoin dropped to $80,927.48 before climbing to $83,740 at 3:45 a.m. ET (7:45 a.m. UTC). A later market snapshot placed BTC at $83,229.36.

About $814 million in crypto-futures positions were liquidated over the previous 24 hours as of 3:40 a.m. ET (7:40 a.m. UTC). Long positions accounted for approximately $689 million of the total, while shorts made up about $125 million.

South Korea’s KOSPI closed at 6,035.35, down 5.46% from the previous session. Samsung Electronics fell 7.29%, and SK Hynix dropped 10.09% as investors questioned the pace and profitability of artificial-intelligence investment and assessed competition from Chinese memory-chip producers.

The timing placed the Korean equity selloff alongside Bitcoin’s intraday decline, but it does not establish that one caused the other. U.S. bank earnings were the next scheduled market focus, with JPMorganChase and Citi set to release third-quarter results Tuesday morning, followed by scheduled events from Goldman Sachs.