- Bitcoin and other crypto markets recorded huge losses after Iran officially launched an attack against Israel
- Among the top 20 coins, the biggest losses in this event were SHIB, AVAX, and XRP, with losses of over 10% over the past hour.
Cryptocurrency markets are reacting massively to rising tensions in the Middle East. Bitcoin (BTC), the king coin, lost nearly 8% of its value within minutes, and other cryptocurrencies recorded even greater losses. The cryptocurrency's major sell-off occurred following news of an official Iranian attack on Israel confirmed by Israeli authorities.
As of this writing, Bitcoin (BTC) is trading at $62,049, with a market capitalization of over $1 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap. The coin recorded a downtrend of 7.51% in the past hour, while the trend over the past day shows a similar pattern.
Bitcoin (BTC) price source: TradingView
Ethereum (ETH), the second largest cryptocurrency on the market, has also lost a significant portion of its value in the past hour. According to CMC, ETH has lost nearly 9% of its value, and at the time of writing, the coin was trading at $2,924. ETH had a market capitalization of over $353 billion and trading volume of over $41 billion.
Notably, the three biggest decliners among the top 20 cryptocurrencies in the past hour were Shiba Inu (SHIB), down about 13.01%, XRP, down 13.89%, and Avalanche (AVAX), down 12.46%. was.
Bitcoin bears the brunt of the escalating situation in the Middle East
After reports that Iran had launched a direct attack against Israel were confirmed, prices in the cryptocurrency market fell all at once. The move appears significant as it is the first time the Iranian regime has launched a direct attack against Israel from its homeland.
Iran has launched dozens of drones toward Israel, but the target remains unclear. The move came in retaliation to Israel for an attack by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on the country's consular annex in Damascus. Along with the market reaction, the attack led to the closure of Israeli airspace and planes were diverted from Israeli destinations.
