US strikes on Iran send crypto markets down $80B

U.S. military strikes on an Iranian military site late Wednesday and the downing of four Iranian attack drones triggered a sharp selloff in cryptocurrency markets, wiping roughly $80 billion from major digital-asset valuations. Bitcoin fell to $72,646 and Ether dropped below $2,000.

A U.S. official said the strikes targeted an Iranian facility and that the four drones posed a threat near the Strait of Hormuz. The official described the actions as “measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire.” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps reported it had retaliated by attacking a U.S. airbase in Kuwait. President Donald Trump, speaking at a White House cabinet meeting, said he was “not satisfied” with the deal with Iran and alluded to possible further military action.

Cryptocurrencies moved sharply after the news. Bitcoin declined about 3.5% on the day to $72,646 on Coinbase, its weakest level since April 13. Ether fell more than 4% to $1,976, slipping below the $2,000 mark and reaching its lowest price since late March. The $80 billion figure reflects the combined decline across major tokens over a 24-hour period.

Oil prices rose in parallel. West Texas Intermediate futures topped $92 per barrel and Brent crude climbed to about $98, each up roughly 3.5% on the session.

Market participants cited three channels for the price moves: higher perceived geopolitical risk in the Middle East, the potential for oil supply disruption, and flows into safer assets. Nick Ruck, director at LVRG Research, said traders treated the episode as a test of crypto’s risk profile and that Bitcoin and Ethereum behaved more like high-beta risk assets during the period of uncertainty.

The strikes occurred amid negotiations intended to end a conflict that began Feb. 28 with earlier U.S. and allied strikes. Earlier in the week, markets had rallied after comments from President Trump that U.S.-Iran deal ‘largely negotiated’. Reports of the U.S. military action reversed that optimism, accelerating selling as leveraged positions were unwound and liquidity thinned in crypto markets.

The selloff halted a short-lived rally in digital assets and corresponded with rising oil prices. Investors and traders are watching for further military escalations, any new economic sanctions or supply interruptions that could affect inflation, and whether central bank policy expectations shift in response to higher energy prices.