Bitcoin price live: Crypto markets tumble after Trump shock

The price of bitcoin has dramatically crashed amid broader fears across the market.

It is the most dramatic crash of Donald Trump’s presidency, after a period that has seen huge surges linked to his commitments to put crypto at the heart of his administration.

But the price fell quickly on Tuesday morning as tariffs and other fears also dragged stock markets down.

Analysts have also suggested that the industry is still awaiting promised support from Trump for the crypto market, including plans to launch a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve.

The fat also came amid a major hack at the Bybit exchange, and increasing worries that the trend for memecoins – which are often launched amid high excitement but then crash again – could damage the reputation of the technology.

Key Points

• Crypto market crashes amid variety of worries
• Crypto prices hit in part by 'history's biggest digital heist'

'The biggest heist in digital history' helps send crypto plunging

16:56 , Andrew Griffin

Part of today’s reaction appears to be a couple of days late – analysts believe that one of the problems is a hack on Bybit last week, which was the “biggest heist in digital history”.

Last week's 1.5 billion dollar (£1.2 billion) theft of ether, the token which powers the Ethereum blockchain network, from the crypto exchange Bybit, dampened sentiment.

The Dubai-based platform, which allows users to buy and sell crypto with one another, said an attacker gained control of someone's digital wallet containing the funds and transferred them to an unknown blockchain address.

Bybit's chief executive Ben Zhou said at the time that the platform "is solvent even if this hack loss is not recovered, all of clients assets are 1 to 1 backed, we can cover the loss".

Nonetheless, the news sparked a fresh selloff across the most popular crypto tokens, amid fresh fears that the industry could be vulnerable to hackers.

Fall could be result of worries across financial markets

16:55 , Andrew Griffin

Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading firm XTB, said volatility in wider financial markets may be weighing on crypto investor sentiment.

She said the fall in value is "a sign that the current environment of rising volatility is not conducive to cryptocurrency gains".

Trading activity surge

16:54 , Andrew Griffin

Almost everything in crypto is down today. Everything, that is, apart from market activity – which is up hugely. There’s been $210 billion of trading volume done today, which is up 105 per cent, as people look to respond to the huge crash.

What next for bitcoin?

15:21 , Anthony Cuthbertson

Bitcoin has just dropped below $87,000, leading to fears that the price slide is far from over. We’ve heard from some crypto market experts, who offer their thoughts on the current trajectory of the world’s leading cryptocurrency.

Agne Linge, Head of growth at crypto platform WeFi, warns that negative sentiment might continue to compound over the coming weeks, but she remains more positive for the longer-term outlook.

“The market is experiencing one of the biggest negative resets this year,” she tells The Independent. “While the bottom pricing for most altcoins may not be in, the forecast for growth remains as the positive fundamentals, like institutional adoption, remain optimal”.

Arthur Azizov,CEO at payments app B2BINPAY, adds: “If we close below $89,233 and start trading beneath this level, the outlook becomes less favourable, as there is a possibility of further decline. On the other hand, if bitcoin is bought back throughout the day, we could see further upward movement.

“At the moment, it is difficult to draw firm conclusions, as bitcoin’s price remains at a critical level and is likely to hover there for some time.”

Why did crypto market crash?

13:03 , Anthony Cuthbertson

The beginning of the latest slide began on Friday, when news emerged that hackers were able to steal $1.5 billion from the crypto platform Bybit.

Fears over the US Federal Reserve getting a Musk makeover compounded the latest downturn, while Donald Trump has also been blamed for failing to deliver on his pledge to be the first ever “bitcoin president”.

You can read the full round-up of reasons, and hear from experts, in the story below:

Why has bitcoin price crashed? Hacks, Fed fears and Trump’s broken promises

Bitcoin's price crash in perspective

11:55 , Anthony Cuthbertson

Bitcoin’s latest nose dive has seen $20,000 wiped from its value since peaking in late January, but zooming out the losses seem less severe.

The world’s leading cryptocurrency is still up more than 60 per cent since September, and more than quadruple the price of its 2023 lows.

It’s still too early to tell whether this latest downturn marks the beginning of a bear market, with analysts divided in their predictions for the direction of the crypto market over the current months. Looking at recent estimates made by industry figures, some still believe that the peak of this cycle is yet to be hit.

Crypto market crashes amid variety of worries

11:02 , Andrew Griffin

Here’s our story on this morning’s crash.

The price of bitcoin is plunging dramatically

Hack hits crypto prices

10:50 , Andrew Griffin

Ethereum – the second largest cryptocurrency – is struggling more than bitcoin. It is down almost 11 per cent over the last 24 hours.

That is in large part due to a hack of the exchange Bybit, during which attackers stole $1.5 billion, in what has been called history’s “biggest digital heist”.

Hello and welcome...

10:40 , Andrew Griffin

... to The Independent’s live coverage of an ongoing crash in the crypto markets.