The crypto market suffered a slight dip on Saturday, April 18th, after the tensions in the Middle East took an interesting turn over the weekend. On Friday, United States President Donald Trump announced that Iran fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz (for the first time since March) for the free passage of oil vessels, with the global financial markets and crypto reacting positively to the news. However, Iran announced on Saturday that it has closed the Strait again, with digital asset prices dropping on the back of the fresh development.
Bitcoin Falls Below $76k As Iran Closes Strait Again
On Saturday, Iran’s military announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz again, with reports suggesting at least three attacks on commercial ships along the waterway. After President Trump’s several announcements going into the weekend, the Iranian Speaker of the Parliament, Mohammad Ghalibaf, said the US president made “seven claims in one hour, all seven of which were false.”
What’s interesting is that the crypto and global financial markets have been seeing a return of bullish momentum after a ceasefire agreement was reached between the United States and Iran in recent weeks. However, with the ceasefire agreement set to expire in a couple of days and negotiations looking broken down, volatility and uncertainty seem set to return to the markets in the coming days.
According to data from CoinGecko, the global cryptocurrency market capitalization is down by more than 2%, with the Bitcoin and Ethereum prices showing dips of 2% and 3%, respectively. Specifically, the premier cryptocurrency, which ran up to a 10-week high of around $77,500 on Friday, is now back below $76,000.
Despite the crypto market gaining notoriety for slow price actions during the weekends, it’s interesting to see asset prices move in line with the latest developments in the Gulf. With no clear resolution in sight, the next few days could come with some degree of volatility.
Crypto Market Back To Point Zero?
Following these recent developments in the Middle East, conversations around the potential formation of a bottom in this current bear market now appear premature. Bitcoin, for instance, seems to have formed a local top around $77,500, with its current value at around $75,760.
Meanwhile, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, sits at around $2,350, as of this writing. Other large-cap cryptocurrencies that have faced significant declines over the weekend include XRP and Solana, each falling by at leaast 3% in the past 24 hours.
