Cryptocurrencies wiped out almost all their gains since Donald Trump’s election win in early November as fallout from the US president’s tariff onslaught sparked heavy selling in an asset class he’s vowed to champion.
Bitcoin briefly tumbled below $75 000 (R1.4 million) on Monday for the first time since November 7, dropping as much as 5.3% before recovering slightly. Smaller tokens remained subdued, however, with XRP, Solana and Cardano all trading down between 5% and 10% as of 8.57 am in New York. Ether traded at its lowest since March 2023.
The total market capitalisation of all cryptocurrencies fell about 11% to $2.5 trillion, roughly where it stood when Trump sealed his victory, according to CoinGecko data.
The slide comes as Trump dug in on sweeping tariffs that have already wiped trillions in value from global equities, and dashed hopes that crypto would withstand the pressure better than other assets. Asian and European stocks and US equity-index futures slumped on Monday, while the yen surged in a sign of deepening turmoil throughout financial markets.
The crypto industry was incredibly supportive of Trump’s second term, ranking as one of the highest bankrollers of his electoral campaign last year. In return, US authorities have dismissed or paused most high-profile investigations into crypto businesses, while lawmakers push ahead with new legislation to regulate the sector.
“Crypto came into 2025 expecting a Trump tailwind and got a Category 5 storm instead,” said Matthew Graham, the CEO and founder of crypto-focused venture capital firm Ryze Labs. “We expected the tailwind, and in return, he stiffed us.”
Coinglass data show about $1.2bn worth of bullish crypto wagers were liquidated in the past 24 hours, the most since early December.
Options markets suggest the selling pressure may continue “with the skew for puts picking up considerably,” said Sean McNulty, the head of APAC derivatives at digital-asset prime brokerage FalconX.
Digital assets had shown some resistance to the panic that roiled markets after Trump first unveiled his tariff programme, hinting at a possible breakaway from the gravitational pull of technology stocks. Monday’s selloff indicates that the high positive correlation between crypto and the Nasdaq 100 that has prevailed since the Covid-19 pandemic may persist.
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