Bitcoin plunges to $71k as Jensen Huang abruptly resigns sending Nvidia into $2 trillion wipeout

Nvidia co-founder Jensen Huang resigned Thursday, sending the chipmaker's shares tumbling and intensifying a selloff across cryptocurrency markets.

On Nov. 12, the company announced that Huang had stepped down as chief executive, president, and board member, effective immediately, ending his 33-year leadership of the artificial intelligence giant.

Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress was appointed interim CEO while Nvidia searches for a permanent replacement. Harvey Jones, a longtime director and former Synopsys executive, will serve as board chairman.

The company did not specify a reason for Huang's resignation.

However, the departure had followed reports of Huang's extramarital relationships, including one involving a woman suspected by US authorities of having Chinese intelligence connections. Nvidia's board had launched an independent investigation into the allegations, which remain unproven.

The upheaval triggered a sharp decline in Nvidia shares, which fell as much as 10% in premarket trading to approximately $156.

At that price, the company's implied market capitalization would fall to roughly $3.8 trillion, nearly $2 trillion below its October peak of approximately $5.8 trillion.

Speaking on this performance, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju noted that:

“[Nvidia stock's] analyst sentiment just hit -2.6σ, the most bearish on record.”

The selling extended to Nvidia-backed AI infrastructure companies. CoreWeave fell more than 13% in premarket trading, while Nebius declined about 20% amid concerns about its growth outlook.

The uncertainty also spilled into cryptocurrency markets, where Bitcoin and Ethereum fell to their lowest price values since August. BTC fell below $71,500, while ETH dropped below $1,990, per CryptoSlate data.

The market reaction reflects Nvidia's central role in the AI investment boom, with Huang overseeing both its dominance in advanced processors and an expanding network of financial arrangements supporting companies that buy them.

The leadership crisis has also revived concerns about Nvidia's role in financing the AI infrastructure expansion, particularly the circular investment arrangements connecting chip suppliers, cloud operators and AI developers.

Nic Puckrin, chief executive of Coin Bureau, warned that replacing Huang could backfire on the broader AI industry, citing his central role in negotiating financing agreements.