Key Takeaways
- • Bitcoin declined 5.5% to US$61,322 on Thursday morning—its lowest level in nearly four months since February 6—before recovering to US$64,200 by afternoon, demonstrating support around the US$63,000 level that institutional traders have been monitoring closely.
- • The cryptocurrency shed approximately 13% of its value during the week, a decline triggered partly by MicroStrategy's sale of US$2.5 million in bitcoin holdings, which fractured market confidence despite the company's historical "never sell" positioning as a major digital-asset treasury holder.
- • Bitcoin has depreciated roughly 50% from its all-time high above US$126,000 reached in October 2025, underperforming technology equities which reached record levels during the same period.
- • Geopolitical tension from renewed Middle East clashes and threatened US-Iran peace negotiations intensified risk-off sentiment across broader markets, with Asian stocks and US equity futures declining alongside crypto assets on June 4.
- • Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, slumped to its lowest level since April 2025 before joining bitcoin's afternoon recovery, indicating sector-wide pressure among digital assets.
Summary
The broader weakness marked a bruising week for bitcoin, which surrendered approximately 13% of its value over the five-day period. The selloff accelerated following MicroStrategy's announcement that it had sold US$2.5 million of its substantial bitcoin holdings—a modest transaction in absolute terms but symbolically significant given the company's established position as one of the largest institutional bitcoin accumulators over recent years. Josh Du, chief investment officer at Animoca Brands, attributed the market reaction to MicroStrategy's departure from its stated "never sell" philosophy, noting that the breach of this conviction undermined broader investor confidence in the asset class.
The decline places bitcoin down approximately 50% from its all-time high above US$126,000 recorded in October 2025, a period during which equity markets reached record levels. This divergence underscores bitcoin's vulnerability to macroeconomic shocks independent of equity market dynamics. The immediate catalyst for Thursday's weakness stemmed from renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, with escalating clashes threatening interim US-Iran peace negotiations. This risk-off environment rippled across financial markets, with Asian equities and US equity-index futures declining alongside cryptocurrencies.
Ether, the second-largest digital asset by market capitalization, similarly experienced severe pressure, reaching its lowest level since April 2025 before joining bitcoin's afternoon bounce. The broader sector weakness indicates that cryptocurrency volatility remains tightly coupled to macroeconomic risk factors and geopolitical developments, rather than exhibiting the uncorrelated behavior some institutional investors have historically attributed to digital assets.
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