Bitcoin experienced a sharp decline of more than 4% on Thursday, tumbling to an intraday low of approximately $106,290. The drop reflected a wave of unease sweeping across the digital currency market as traders digested a combination of policy signals emanating from both the U.S. Federal Reserve and President Donald Trump. In essence, the prevailing sentiment within the cryptocurrency ecosystem appeared to be one of collective anxiety, with investors increasingly uncertain about the near-term trajectory of the market and the macroeconomic forces shaping its future.
Only a few weeks earlier, Bitcoin had soared to an unprecedented record high of about $125,245 on October 5, a milestone that had briefly rekindled hopes among enthusiastic supporters that the leading cryptocurrency might continue its seemingly unstoppable ascent. Buoyed by that meteoric rise, some of the more exuberant voices in the crypto community had ventured predictions suggesting that Bitcoin’s value could, hypothetically, soar indefinitely. Yet, over the past several weeks, this optimistic narrative has faltered under the weight of market reality, particularly in the wake of a sudden and severe flash crash two weeks prior. That event erased billions of dollars in market capitalization, reminding even seasoned investors that digital assets remain vulnerable to abrupt volatility and speculative excess.
The preceding day, the Federal Reserve had announced a fresh round of interest rate cuts, lowering the benchmark short‑term rate to a range between 3.75% and 4%. According to reporting from the Wall Street Journal, this adjustment brought rates down to their lowest level in three years. Notably, this policy move aligned closely with President Donald Trump’s persistent demands; since the beginning of his second term in January, he has repeatedly pressured Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to ease monetary policy in an effort to stimulate growth and, by extension, sustain market momentum. While many investors initially welcomed the rate reductions, Powell’s subsequent remarks introduced a new element of caution. He clarified that the Federal Reserve had not established any assurance of further rate cuts when the central bank reconvened in December, adding tersely, “Far from it.” This ambiguity unsettled both Wall Street and crypto markets alike, fostering renewed concerns that monetary policy support might wane sooner than traders had anticipated.
Further complicating the landscape was President Trump’s high‑profile meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, which also weighed heavily on market sentiment. The U.S. administration announced that tariffs on goods imported from China would be reduced slightly—from 57% to 47%, a modest cut of just 10 percentage points. Although intended as a gesture toward trade normalization, the limited scale of this reduction did not satisfy many investors who had hoped for a more substantial easing of trade tensions. In the context of the cryptocurrency sector, these developments were interpreted as a mixed signal: while lower tariffs could theoretically support broader economic stability, the underlying geopolitical uncertainty remained unresolved, keeping risk‑averse traders on edge.
Within the broader digital asset community, President Trump has often been perceived as a volatile but largely favorable figure, due in part to his unconventional approach to market regulation. Among his most controversial actions was the decision to dissolve the Department of Justice’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET), a specialized division established to investigate illicit activity in the crypto space. Traditionally, healthy financial markets value the presence of regulators who can deter fraud and maintain transparency, thus enhancing institutional trust. However, Trump’s governing philosophy appears markedly different. His administration’s stance—less inclined toward oversight and more permissive of aggressive market behavior—has been summarized by critics as a form of laissez‑faire opportunism, where accountability yields to self‑interest.
Trump has further amplified this perception through a series of high‑profile pardons, many of which have sparked fierce debate. Among those granted clemency were Ross Ulbricht, the controversial founder of the Silk Road online marketplace, and more recently, Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance. Although Zhao had already completed his prison sentence, the presidential pardon effectively absolves him from paying the remaining $50 million in financial restitution, a move that many observers interpret as emblematic of Trump’s willingness to defy conventional notions of justice in pursuit of loyalty or ideological consistency.
In the hours following its steep drop, Bitcoin managed to recover slightly from its earlier lows, rebounding to a level near $107,900 at the time of writing. Despite this modest recovery, the cryptocurrency still remained more than 5% below its valuation from one month earlier. When viewed through a longer‑term lens, however, the digital asset remains markedly higher than it was a year ago—when, in the weeks preceding the 2024 presidential election, Bitcoin traded at roughly $68,500. This broader perspective underscores both the asset’s enduring volatility and its remarkable capacity for long‑term appreciation.
Other major cryptocurrencies also suffered substantial losses during Thursday’s trading session. Ethereum declined by 4.3%, Binance Coin (BNB) fell approximately 4%, XRP dropped around 6.7%, and Solana registered a 6.3% decline. Taken together, these synchronized downturns reinforced the perception that investor confidence across the cryptocurrency market remains fragile, influenced not only by macroeconomic signals and political developments but also by the inherently speculative nature of digital assets themselves.
Sourse: https://gizmodo.com/bitcoin-price-plunges-as-crypto-traders-get-nervous-about-future-2000679860
