As the U.S. airstrikes on Iran's nuclear facilities sharply escalated tensions in the Middle East, the price of Bitcoin showed weakness, temporarily falling below $100,000.
According to CoinMarketCap, a global cryptocurrency market tracking website, Bitcoin was trading at $100,841 as of 8:40 a.m. on the 23rd. After plummeting to around $102,000 at about 10 p.m. the previous day, it briefly dropped to $98,543 but slightly rebounded, maintaining the $100,000 mark. This represents a 4.5% decline compared to a week ago.
Ethereum, the leading altcoin, was priced at $2,228 around the same time, reflecting a 12.51% drop from a week ago. During the same period, XRP fell 7.05% to $2.01, Binance Coin dropped 4.96% to $616.28, and Solana recorded a decline of 13.58% to $131.90.
This downward trend is attributed to the U.S. attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. Immediately after the U.S. targeted Iran's nuclear sites, the price of Bitcoin was around $102,000-$103,000, but speculation of further U.S. attacks led to an expanded decline.
U.S. President Donald Trump noted during a speech to the nation from the White House on the 21st (local time) that U.S. military forces directly struck Iran's nuclear facilities. This admitted direct involvement in the conflict between Israel and Iran.