Bitcoin tumbled below $80,000 on Friday for the first time since November, as concerns of a “full-blown bear market” in cryptocurrencies intensified.
Fears of a global trade war, coupled with disappointing earnings from AI chip giant Nvidia, have spurred investor selloffs in riskier assets.
Bitcoin, one of the most volatile investments, briefly dipped to $78,225.84—more than 25% below last month’s peak above $109,000 when Trump took office—and has lost 20% in just the past week. It has since rebounded slightly to $84,504.
David Morrison, an analyst at Trade Nation, described the situation as a “crypto meltdown,” noting that Ethereum has shed nearly half its value since mid-December.
“Some analysts believe this isn’t just a correction but a full-blown bear market,” he said, highlighting that Bitcoin has now erased most of its gains since Trump’s election in November.
Morrison added that earlier optimism around a more crypto-friendly regulatory environment had largely unraveled, contributing to the sharp decline.
