Bitcoin It slipped back towards $69,000 on Tuesday morning as equities fell sharply across crypto markets.
After trading near $71,000 earlier in the session, BTC fell to around $69,600 in early US hours, following a broad reversal across risk assets. Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL) and XRP (XRP) were also down 2%-3% in the last 24 hours.
Bitcoin appears to be following a familiar trend for the past three months. According to Velo data, it typically rose by more than 1% on Monday and then fell by a little less than 1% on Tuesday.
The move coincided with a decline in software stocks, with the iShares Extended Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) down about 4%. Crypto prices have moved in line with the sector in recent months, with both trending downwards since October. That relationship was on full display again, with that particular area of tech as well as digital assets weakening.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq equity indexes were 0.5% and 0.8% lower, paring most of their Monday gains on news of talks between the US and Iran. Global yields continue to rise, the DXY remains stable above 99, and oil is up 2% in the past 24 hours, reinforcing the broader risk-off tone.
Crypto-linked equities also came under pressure. Circle (CRCL), the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, led the decline, plunging 16% in a sharp reversal after its recent rally that sent shares soaring more than 100% in a month. Crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN) dropped 8%. The move comes as CoinDesk reported late Monday that the latest version of the Clarity Act will not allow rewards on balances, limiting yields on stablecoins. “This weakens a key part of the bull case by making it harder for USDC to evolve from a payments utility into a true store-of-value product,” Shay Boller, chief market strategist at Futurum Equities, said in an X post.
Circle’s major rival, USDT issuer Tether, also announced it has hired a “Big Four” accounting firm for a thorough audit, which is seen as a major step towards improving trust in USDT’s reserve assets.
Changes in interest rate expectations
In one of the more remarkable 180-degree turnarounds in recent years, market participants have, in a matter of weeks, gone from debating how far the central bank will cut rates in 2026 to pricing in imminent rate hikes.
According to CME Fedwatch, there is now a zero chance of a rate cut at the April or June Federal Reserve policy meetings, and instead about a 15% chance of a rate hike. The June Fed meeting will likely be chaired by Kevin Wersh, whom President Trump has nominated to replace Jerome Powell as head of the US central bank in a bid to reduce borrowing costs.