Bitcoin remained under pressure from persistent uncertainty over just what Trump’s policies will entail for crypto, after the President announced new, albeit vague plans to draft a regulatory framework for the industry.
Risk appetite was also pressured by anticipation of a Federal Reserve meeting this week, where the central bank is widely expected to hold interest rates and strike a hawkish chord.
Broader risk-driven markets sank in Asian trade, with tech stocks under pressure from DeepSeek, which recently released an AI program that claimed to match rivals such as ChatGPT in performance for a fraction of the cost. Losses in equities appeared to have spilled over into crypto.
Bitcoin fell 4.4% to $100,557.5 by 00:10 ET (05:10 GMT).
A memecoin launched by the President earlier in January, $TRUMP, also slid further on Monday after wiping out about 60% of its value since a post-launch peak.
Risk appetite was sapped by Trump threatening to impose 25% trade tariffs on Colombia over refusal to comply with his stance on deporting migrants. But Colombia’s government accepted Trump’s terms shortly after his tariff threat, with the White House stating that the proposed tariffs were now on hold.
Still, Trump’s move drummed up fears that he will make good on his threats to impose tariffs on other major economies, including Mexico, Canada, and China.
But a bigger point of contention over Trump, especially for crypto markets, was that Trump made no mention of Bitcoin in an executive order calling for better crypto regulations and a national digital asset reserve.
This sparked increased doubts over whether Trump will actually be able to deliver on promises of a Bitcoin reserve. Establishment of the reserve through an executive order is likely to limit its scope, while any requirement of Congressional approval for the reserve is expected to face opposition from fiscally conscious lawmakers.
Broader crypto prices retreated on Monday, falling in tandem with Bitcoin as risk appetite remained subdued.
$TRUMP was the worst performer among major altcoins, sliding nearly 14% to $26.675. The token has now wiped out about 60% of its value since a post-launch peak of over $60, and has steadily fallen in the past week amid volatile trade.
Volatility in $TRUMP also spilled over into broader crypto markets, souring sentiment towards the sector. The token- which netted Trump billions in paper gains- raised questions over the ethics of Trump using his influence to manipulate crypto markets.
World no.2 crypto Ether fell 5.8% to $3,148.51, while XRP slid 6.2% to $2.9369.
Solana, Cardano, and Polygon slid between 5% and 11%, while among meme tokens, Dogecoin lost 9.4%.
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