Bitcoin tumbled towards the $72,000 level after reports of a new wave of US military attacks on Iran drove up oil prices and sent another shock to risk assets.
The largest cryptocurrency fell as much as 3.6% in 24 hours, hitting an intraday low of $72,792, according to . crypto slate data. As of this writing, it has recovered slightly to $73,274.
The fall in BTC coincided with a sudden spike in energy prices after the US military launched new airstrikes against targets in Iran. This has disrupted an already fragile geopolitical landscape and dampened investor appetite for risk assets around the world.
The downward momentum quickly spilled over into the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem. Ethereum, the second-largest digital asset, fell about 5%, falling below the $2,000 level.
Even the latest market darlings have been caught in the crossfire. Hyper Liquid (HYPE) continued its aggressive rally for several weeks, hitting all-time highs above $64, before quickly reversing and plummeting more than 9% to near $55.
Other major tokens such as Solana, BNB, XRP, Cardano, and Dogecoin recorded across-the-board losses as selling pressure expanded on both centralized and decentralized platforms.
Geopolitical shocks hit energy and risk assets
The cross-asset risk aversion event began in the Middle East, where the U.S. military reportedly deployed F/A-18 jets to attack Iranian drone ground control units in major port cities along the Strait of Hormuz.
The move followed reports that Iranian forces had launched unmanned aerial vehicles targeting commercial ships and U.S. assets in the region, according to U.S. defense officials cited by the Wall Street Journal.
The situation worsened when Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) reportedly issued an official statement confirming that it had retaliated by attacking a US air base in Kuwait, warning that “no invasion will go unresponsive.”
Military exchanges immediately put pressure on traditional commodity markets. Brent crude oil futures rose nearly 5% to more than $96 a barrel as energy traders priced in a large risk premium.
The resumption of fighting has effectively ended any hopes for a short-term diplomatic solution to secure the Strait of Hormuz. It is an important maritime artery that handles 25% of the world’s total oil traffic.
Rachel Lucas, a cryptocurrency analyst at BTC Markets, commented on the market situation as follows:
“Macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds simultaneously weighed on investor sentiment, making it an extremely difficult 24 hours for digital asset markets.”
He said that rising tensions between the US and Iran and the resulting logistical uncertainties around the Strait of Hormuz directly led to Bitcoin’s decline.
She said that while Bitcoin showed some resilience compared to the structural damage seen in traditional equity and derivatives markets, risk assets were under pressure around the world.
Leveraged longs face $930 million cascade
Once the spot price broke through the psychological support level, this decline triggered a severe liquidation event across the crypto derivatives market.
Cryptocurrency traders who were using high leverage to back up their bullish bets found themselves under margin call pressure. This forced automated platforms to systematically close out undercollateralized positions.
Data from Coinglass revealed that $930 million in derivatives positions were forcefully liquidated within 24 hours. This change affected more than 166,130 individual personal and institutional accounts.
The economic damage was overwhelmingly borne by bullish market participants. Long positions in anticipation of continued rise in digital asset prices accounted for approximately $870 million of the total eliminations.
In contrast, short sellers suffered modest losses, with only $60 million of short positions liquidated during the volatile trading session.
Bitcoin-related contracts faced the brunt of liquidation, enduring over $366 million in forced closures. Ethereum derivatives traders were similarly punished, with approximately $240 million in positions wiped out.
The single largest individual liquidation occurred on the Hyperliquid DEX platform, where a single Bitcoin swap contract worth $15.34 million was automatically terminated.
Withdrawal of financial institutions: ETF outflows accelerate
Market pressures are also reflected in institutional inflows, with the U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) recording its second-largest outflow this year.
Total net outflows for 11 listed U.S. products amounted to $733.4 million, according to SosoValue data.
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) led the withdrawal, shedding an unprecedented $527.82 million in a single session. Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) continued its structural hemorrhage with withdrawals of $104.76 million, while Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) recorded a decline of $60.3 million.
Additional outflows were also observed in Bitwise (BITB) and Ark Invest (ARKB), which lost $17.48 million and $17.39 million, respectively.
Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust (MSBT) was the only bright spot, posting modest net inflows of $4.29 million, while providers such as Invesco, Franklin Templeton, Valkyrie, and VanEck reported flat inflows.
With just one day of outflows, the continued flight of capital from spot Bitcoin products has been extended to eight consecutive business days, with cumulative losses now reaching $2.6 billion.
Due to continuous redemptions over a long period of time, the total assets under management of U.S. spot ETFs have fallen below the milestone of $100 billion, and are approximately $97 billion at the time of writing.
On-chain data suggests a “double risk-off” regime
The blockchain data underlying price trends indicates fundamental changes in market structure.
According to Axel Adler, on-chain analyst at CryptoQuant, over 103,000 BTC returned to centralized exchanges in the 30-day trailing period. This marks the most active token influx into the trading platform since spring 2025.
At the same time, stablecoin liquidity is flowing out of centralized exchanges at a rate of $153 million per day.
“Two fundamental flow indicators are flashing warning signs at the same time,” Adler said. “Coins are returning to exchanges, thereby increasing the supply of instant liquidity available for sale. Meanwhile, stablecoins are being withdrawn from platforms, stripping order books of instant purchasing power. This is the textbook definition of a dual risk-off market setup.”
This change marks a complete structural reversal from the accumulation regime observed during March-April, when net exchange flows reached a cycle low of -300,000 BTC, and indicates that investors are actively moving assets into offline cold storage.
The trend reversed on May 18th when net flows turned positive and eventually peaked on May 26th, creating an oversupply and complicating Bitcoin’s defense of the $73,000 level.
CryptoQuant on-chain analyst Dirkforst also pointed out that Bitcoin is currently in a structural zone where spot demand is rapidly shrinking.
According to analysts:
“Monthly aggregate demand growth now averages -139,000 BTC, with the asset returning to a medium-term bearish corridor.”
Technical fix or structural change?
Despite the deep deleveraging, some research firms are cautioning against interpreting the decline as a permanent macroeconomic breakdown.
Analysts note that geopolitical shocks traditionally cause sharp, front-loaded price movements that tend to normalize once local uncertainties subside.
“The US attack on Iranian positions has created an undeniable geopolitical risk premium across the spectrum of risk assets,” said Nansen research analyst Nikolai Sondergaard. “Bitcoin has absorbed approximately 5.5% of its premium over the past three days, correcting from around $77,100 to its current $72,900 range. This move is consistent with the historical pattern we have observed during past military escalations in the Middle East.”
Sondergaard added that a key indicator to monitor is whether the conflict remains geographically contained or escalates into a broader regional war. he said. crypto slate:
“Today, foreign exchange flows have shifted to net inflows, proving that distribution pressures remain active. However, history has shown that when geopolitical events, rather than structural macroeconomic disruptions, act as the primary catalyst, the resulting price declines are usually absorbed once the immediate logistical and political uncertainty subsides.”
Furthermore, signs of a build-up of institutional contrarianism emerged amid the widespread rout.
Ethereum treasury company Bitmine has executed a notable bulk purchase of 111,942 ETH, representing a capital commitment of $238 million.
Market observers view the size of the trade as a significant adverse signal for daily ETF redemptions, suggesting that long-term institutional beliefs remain intact even under the immediate derivatives-driven panic.
(Tag translation) Bitcoin
