Bitcoin prices have dropped 7% on the day, breaking key support to a nine-week low after the US and Iran launched fresh strikes as talks over a possible ceasefire have stalled.
Bitcoin (BTC) fell to $65,385 on Coinbase in early trading on Wednesday, its lowest level since late March, according to TradingView.
The slump follows the largest daily fall since Feb. 5 as BTC shed more than $4,500 on Tuesday.
According to CoinGlass data, around 277,000 traders have been liquidated over the past 24 hours, with total liquidations of around $1.83 billion. More than 90% of them were long positions, primarily in Bitcoin and Ether (ETH).
Bitcoin has fallen below $66,000 in the most significant single-day drop since February. Source: TradingView
Andri Fauzan Adziima, the research lead at Bitrue Research Institute, told Cointelegraph that Bitcoin’s current drop is more about “leveraged liquidations, heavy ETF outflows, and technical breakdowns than pure Iran news, but it amplifies the fear.”
Adziima said he expected “choppy consolidation,” as real support sits lower around $64,000 to $65,000, “with any de-escalation or strong macro rebound potentially sparking a sharp relief rally.”
The $150 billion crypto market capitalization exodus came as the US continued its military strikes against what it called “aggressive Iranian behavior.”
US Central Command stated on Tuesday that it had successfully defeated multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones, and “conducted self-defense strikes” on Qeshm Island in response to attempted attacks by Iran across the Middle East.
“Iran launched several ballistic missiles toward regional neighbors; however, all failed to hit their intended targets,” CENTCOM said. Two Iranian missiles were fired at Kuwait, and three missiles were launched at Bahrain, it added.
Related: Crypto turns ‘contrarian bet’ as AI stocks draw investor attention: Bitwise
The latest skirmish comes amid a two-month ceasefire between the US and Iran, which has included indirect talks on extending the ceasefire and lifting a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. However, negotiations have yet to yield an agreement.
President Donald Trump claimed on Truth Social on Tuesday that “reports that the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the USA, stopped speaking a few days ago are false and erroneous.”
“The conversations between us have been going on continuously, including four days ago, three days ago, two days ago, one day ago, and today,” he said.
The comments came after Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday that the country would halt all conversations with the US until Israel ceased attacking Lebanon.
Magazine: Big Questions: Do we really only need 2–5 cryptocurrencies?
