THE Bitcoin price returned to a low just below $63,000 as momentum stalled heading into the anticipated block reward halving.
Just three days away from the halving, Bitcoin (BTC) fell to a low of $61,867 and erased its gains from last month. The cryptocurrency is currently trading at around $62,500, down 5.6% for the day and 11.2% for the week, according to CoinGecko data.
The broader crypto market fell alongside Bitcoin, with the combined market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies collapsing 6.4% to $2.4 trillion overnight.
All top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization except stablecoins fell overnight, with Solana (SOL), Toncoin (TON) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) down double digits today – there.
The overnight price plunge led to more than $327 million in liquidations across the entire crypto market in the past 24 hours, with more than $260 million in long positions liquidated, according to data from CoinGlass. Of these, Bitcoin itself accounts for over $83 million in long positions liquidated during this period.
Bitcoin liquidations. Source: CoinGlass
Until a few days ago, the dominant narrative was that Bitcoin is experiencing increased volatility due to the halving. But today, market nervousness appears to be linked to broader macro-geopolitical concerns as tensions rise in the Middle East, including Israeli airstrikes in Gaza and a direct Iranian military attack on Israel.
The spot price of gold surged to a high above $2,400 on Monday as consumers sought traditional safe-haven assets following Iran’s attack on Israel over the weekend. Israel’s military chief warned Monday that the country would respond to the attack, while world leaders called for restraint in hopes of avoiding a spiraling crisis in the region.
Elsewhere, the US dollar index hit a year-to-date high, reflecting a strong dollar and exacerbating the crypto market slowdown; The index tracks the value of the dollar against six major foreign currencies, the euro, Swiss franc, Japanese yen, Canadian dollar, British pound and Swedish krona.
Edited by Stacy Elliott.
News Source : decrypt.co
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