tl;dr
Bitcoin fell over 4% to an intraday low of $103,300 amid escalating military tensions between Israel and Iran, triggering over $500 million in liquidations, including $167 million in Ethereum positions. The broader crypto market declined about 6%, with notable drops in ETH, XRP, Solana, and Cardano,...
Bitcoin's price fell below $104,000 amid escalating tensions between Israel and Iran, triggering over $500 million in cryptocurrency liquidations and increased market volatility. On June 17, Bitcoin dropped more than 4% to an intraday low of $103,300 before recovering slightly to trade around $104,480, down approximately 3.85% over 24 hours.
The broader crypto market experienced a decline of about 6%, with significant falls in Ethereum (ETH), XRP, Solana, and Cardano. Ethereum alone accounted for $167 million of the liquidations, with its price dropping over 5%, while BNB showed less volatility, declining around 1.6%.
This sharp price movement is closely linked to renewed hostilities in the Middle East, including Israel's targeted killing of an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps commander and heightened rhetoric from the US demanding Iran’s unconditional surrender. These developments have increased risk aversion among investors, impacting global assets including cryptocurrencies.
Analysts highlight Bitcoin’s growing role as a hedge against inflation and policy uncertainty, increasingly outperforming traditional assets such as gold and bonds. Adding a 10% Bitcoin allocation to traditional portfolios has been shown to improve risk-adjusted returns, signaling its viability as a strategic asset in turbulent times.
At press time, Bitcoin maintained a market capitalization of approximately $2.08 trillion with a trading volume of $58.21 billion, holding a dominant 63.9% share of the overall $3.25 trillion cryptocurrency market. The evolving geopolitical landscape continues to shape investor sentiment, underscoring crypto’s complex dynamics amid global uncertainty.