- Bitcoin fell below $70,000 for the first time in nearly two months amid Iran conflict concerns
- The cryptocurrency dropped 3%, hitting its lowest level since April 8, trading near $69,500
- Major holder Strategy Inc. sold $2.5 million of Bitcoin, its first sale since late 2022
Bitcoin dipped below $70,000 for the first time in almost two months, as concerns about the conflict in Iran and selling by major holder Strategy Inc. dented investor appetite.
The largest cryptocurrency dropped as much as 3% on Tuesday to its lowest level since April 8, and traded at around $69,500 at 6:30 a.m. in New York. Other cryptocurrencies like Ether and Solana fell across the board.
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US equities futures also slipped after more than a week of gains, as the lack of major progress towards a peace deal with Iran weighed on risk assets. President Donald Trump is struggling to make headway toward an agreement, leaving traders to parse confusing signals about the likelihood of a lasting ceasefire.
“Recent exchanges of attacks and the lack of meaningful progress toward a peace agreement have increased risk aversion across global financial markets,” said Antonio Di Giacomo, senior market analyst at XS.com. “This environment typically benefits traditional safe-haven assets, while more volatile instruments such as cryptocurrencies face heightened selling pressure.”
Bitcoin faces additional headwinds as two of the traditionally biggest sources of demand — exchange-traded funds and Michael Saylor's Strategy — have suddenly become a drag on the price.
Photo Credit: Bloomberg
Strategy on Monday disclosed its first sale of the token since late 2022, disposing of about $2.5 million of its $59 billion stockpile. The move marked a symbolic break from the maximalist playbook that helped make Strategy one of Bitcoin's largest buyers.
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While the sale is negligible relative to Strategy's Bitcoin position, it arrives at a sensitive moment for the market. US ETFs tied to Bitcoin have suffered net outflows for a record 11 straight days, with investors yanking almost $3.5 billion over that stretch, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
As a result, the cushioning effect of progress made on US legislation to oversee crypto markets has been “overwhelmed” by risk-off sentiment on Iran, according James Butterfill, head of research at CoinShares.
Photo Credit: Bloomberg
“A confirmed daily or weekly close below $70,000 would mark a structural shift rather than a headline reaction,” said Sean McNulty, Asia-Pacific derivatives trading lead at FalconX.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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