A week that started with post-election optimism ended with more than a billion dollars in liquidations. Bitcoin briefly lost 75,000 dollars, Ethereum fell to its lowest level in ten weeks, and XRP dropped harder than anything else in the top ten. Here is what actually happened, coin by coin, and what the market is pricing in now.

Why did crypto crash this week?

Four things hit at once.

• A tech and AI rout on Wall Street. The Nasdaq had one of its worst sessions in a long time on Friday, and crypto, which trades like high-beta tech, followed it down. Risk appetite evaporated across the board.
• Regulatory uncertainty after the midterms. The initial rally after Democrats gained control of Congress reversed as traders started pricing in a…