Bitcoin drops back under $70,000, Strategy extends its slide

On Tuesday, Bitcoin experienced a significant decline, dropping under the $70,000 mark for the first time since April, reflecting a shift in market sentiment. The price of the leading cryptocurrency fell more than 5%, reaching $67,692.76 according to data from Coin Metrics. This drop marks the lowest point for Bitcoin since April 5. In addition to Bitcoin, Ether also took a hit, decreasing by 3%, while broader crypto markets appeared bearish. Notably, the cryptocurrency strategy saw a steep decline of over 8%, with Galaxy Digital down by 4% and Coinbase falling by 3%. The downturn began on Monday after Strategy, known for its Bitcoin treasury operations, announced the sale of a small portion of its Bitcoin holdings—the first sale since 2022. This move contradicted the company's founder Michael Saylor's previous stance of never selling Bitcoin, leading to investor unease. The announcement triggered a wave of long liquidations as traders who had leveraged bets on rising prices were forced to exit their positions. This forced selling by exchanges resulted in approximately $594 million in long liquidations over the past 24 hours, as reported by CoinGlass. Bitcoin's struggle to regain momentum toward its record high of over $126,000 in October has been exacerbated by ongoing geopolitical tensions, particularly related to the U.S.-Iran conflict. This uncertainty has put Bitcoin's narrative as 'digital gold'—a safe haven during turmoil—under scrutiny, while it continues to behave like a high-volatility tech stock. Additionally, Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have faced a prolonged outflow, marking their longest streak ever with 11 consecutive days of net withdrawals, according to data from SoSoValue.