Bitcoin fell as low as $70,623 on Sunday after the US announced a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz following failed peace talks with Iran. The price of Bitcoin (BTC) initially dropped 1.9% to $71,686 after US President Donald Trump confirmed the blockade in a Truth Social post, saying talks collapsed because Iran refused to end its nuclear weapons program — “the only issue that really mattered.”
Bitcoin dipped further to $70,623 as US futures opened late Sunday, while oil surged about 9.5% to $105 per barrel within half an hour of the market open. At the time of reporting, Bitcoin was down roughly 2.7% for the day.
The US-Iran dispute over control of the Strait of Hormuz — which handles about one-fifth of global oil trade — has disrupted financial markets over the past six weeks, driving heavy volatility in oil prices not seen since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In addition to the ceasefire announced earlier in the week, Iran had demanded US payments for war reparations and the unfreezing of Iranian financial assets; Trump did not address those demands in his post, attributing the collapse of talks to Iran’s nuclear program stance.
Trump also criticized Iran’s use of mines in the waterway and its toll demands as “world extortion,” ordering the US Navy to block vessels that paid Iran and to destroy the mines.
Despite the conflict, Bitcoin has risen about 7.4% to roughly $71,194 since the US-Iran hostilities began on Feb. 28, when a US airstrike reportedly killed Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Since the onset of the conflict, Bitcoin has outperformed the S&P 500 and gold, recovering some ground after reaching a high of $126,080 in October.