Bitcoin Drops to $63K on Iran Strikes

The recent price drop is part of a larger corrective phase for Bitcoin, which has been trading significantly below its all-time high of over $126,000 reached in October 2025. Before the strikes, Bitcoin was already in a "crypto winter," having seen its price plummet roughly 50% from its peak. The market had been experiencing what some analysts called an "orderly deleveraging" with futures open interest dropping significantly. This sell-off occurred despite a backdrop of strong institutional adoption in the preceding years. U.S. spot crypto ETFs absorbed around $70 billion throughout 2024 and 2025, at times with daily inflows exceeding the new supply of mined bitcoins by more than twelvefold. However, this trend has shifted in 2026, with ETF flows becoming more volatile and even experiencing significant outflows, adding to the selling pressure. The incident has reignited the debate over whether Bitcoin can be considered a "safe haven" asset like gold. While some proponents argue for its status as "digital gold," its immediate, sharp decline in response to geopolitical shocks suggests it still largely behaves as a high-risk asset. Analysts note that in times of major conflict, investors tend to move toward traditional safe havens like gold, U.S. Treasuries, and the yen. The 24/7 nature of the crypto market means it's often the first to react to major global events outside of traditional market hours. The rapid sell-off triggered a wave of liquidations, with about $209 million in long positions wiped out within an hour of the news. This highlights the significant impact of leveraged trading in amplifying price movements during periods of high volatility.