Bitcoin extends decline for fourth day, hits $82,250
As the so-called Trump Bump fades, bitcoin options are showing investors and traders are seeking to hedge against a slide in the cryptocurrency to levels not seen since Donald Trump won the US presidential election.
The number of open put options with a strike price of $70,000 reached the second-highest level among all contracts due to expire on February 28, according to data from Deribit, the world’s largest cryptocurrency options trading platform. A total of $4.9 billion of open options contracts will expire on Friday.
Bitcoin has fallen about 20% from its highest level since Donald Trump’s inauguration in January, as his confrontational stance toward allies and geopolitical rivals alike has shaken investor confidence, and concerns about high inflation persist. The cryptocurrency sector was also rocked by the unprecedented Bybit hack last week.
“Tariff policies are weighing on the outlook further, and expectations of continued high inflation in the short term are increasing general caution,” said Chris Newhouse, director of research at Cumberland Labs. “The Bybit hack has added downward pressure on prices and weighed on market sentiment.”
This is the biggest four-day decline since August. Other cryptocurrencies, such as Ethereum and Solana, have fallen further, falling between 7% and 10%.
The latest price decline is also likely due in part to a decline in demand for Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, which have collectively seen outflows of around $2.1 billion in the past six days.
