Bitcoin's price held relatively steady near $66,100 early Monday, following a weekend of intense volatility triggered by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. The primary cryptocurrency had faced a sharp rejection at the $70,000 level last Wednesday, subsequently dropping below $67,000 before recovering to around $68,000 heading into the weekend.
The weekend's market action was dominated by news of military strikes. On Saturday, airstrikes by the US and Israel against Iran caused Bitcoin's price to tumble to a multi-day low of $63,000. The market rebounded sharply later that day on reports that Iran's Supreme Leader had been killed during the attacks, erasing losses and pushing BTC back to $68,000. The asset failed to hold that level, dipping to $65,200 on Sunday. Despite expectations of further volatility as traditional financial markets in Asia, Europe, and US futures reopened on Monday, BTC remained calm, trading around $66,000. Its market capitalization stands just above $1.320 trillion, with its dominance over altcoins north of 56%.
The most notable shift occurred in the rankings of major altcoins. XRP was among the poorest performers following the initial attacks, which allowed Binance Coin (BNB) to surpass it in terms of market capitalization. The two assets swapped positions again on Sunday, but as of Monday, BNB holds the upper hand. BNB is trading around $617-$619 with a market cap of $84.2 billion, compared to XRP's price of approximately $1.34 and a market cap of $82.5 billion.
The broader altcoin market faced continued pressure. Ethereum lost the $2,000 support level once again, trading near $1,900 with a loss of over 2%. Most other large-cap assets also posted daily declines. Solana (SOL) dropped to around $83, while Dogecoin (DOGE), Cardano (ADA), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Hyperliquid (HYPE), and Chainlink (LINK) are down between 2-3%. Cronos (CC) and Polkadot (DOT) saw more pronounced losses of over 4%. In contrast, HTX Token (HTX) was a notable gainer, up over 3%. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization has declined by roughly $30 billion in a day, now sitting at approximately $2.350 trillion.
