Iran Blocks Strait of Hormuz Again, Cryptocurrency Market Falls Over the Weekend

BroadChain learned that at 07:16 on April 20, according to Bitcoinist, renewed tensions in the Middle East over the weekend led to a slight downturn in the cryptocurrency market on April 18 (Saturday). Previously, U.S. President Trump announced on Friday that Iran had fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz (for the first time since March), allowing oil tankers to pass freely. Global financial markets and cryptocurrencies reacted positively to this news. However, Iran announced the closure of the strait again on Saturday, causing digital asset prices to retreat. On Saturday, the Iranian military announced the re-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, with reports of at least three attacks on commercial vessels in the waterway. Following several statements by President Trump before the weekend, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf stated that the U.S. President "made seven statements in one hour, all of which were false." After the recent U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement, cryptocurrencies and global financial markets had regained bullish momentum. However, with the ceasefire agreement set to expire in a few days and negotiations seemingly broken down, market volatility and uncertainty may return in the coming days. According to CoinGecko data, the total global cryptocurrency market capitalization fell by over 2%, with Bitcoin and Ethereum prices dropping by 2% and 3%, respectively. Specifically, after reaching a ten-week high of around $77,500 on Friday, Bitcoin's price has now fallen below $76,000. Although the cryptocurrency market is known for relatively subdued price fluctuations on weekends, the synchronized movement of asset prices with the latest developments in the Gulf region is noteworthy. Amid uncertain prospects for the situation, the market may experience some degree of volatility in the coming days. With the latest developments in the Middle East, discussions about the current bear market potentially bottoming out now appear premature. For example, Bitcoin seems to have formed a local top around $77,500, with its current value approximately $75,760. Meanwhile, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is trading around $2,350 at the time of writing. Other major cryptocurrencies that experienced significant declines over the weekend include XRP and Solana, each falling at least 3% in the past 24 hours.