Bitcoin's price rapidly fell overnight as the United States and Israel commenced joint "major combat operations" in Iran, targeting military installations. The leading cryptocurrency dropped from $65,572 to $63,176 in about an hour. However, Bitcoin has since recovered most of those losses and is currently trading around $65,051, showing a slight daily and weekly decline.
Major altcoins, including Ethereum, XRP, and Solana, also experienced sharp drops but have similarly regained much of their value. The market volatility led to a surge in crypto liquidations, with approximately $490 million in positions liquidated over the past 24 hours, primarily Bitcoin and Ethereum longs.
At its overnight low, Bitcoin was down nearly 50% from its all-time high. Crypto prices have historically demonstrated sensitivity to geopolitical events, with past instances showing sharp declines following major international conflicts. Iran has reportedly launched retaliatory attacks against U.S. military assets in the Middle East.