Bitcoin and the broader cryptocurrency market experienced significant selling pressure following an escalation in EU-US trade tensions. The crypto market saw liquidations reach $870 million, with the European Union preparing a retaliatory tariff package of approximately $100 billion, referred to as a trade bazooka. This development comes amid increasing threats from former President Donald Trump to annex Greenland.
Bitcoin failed to surpass the $100,000 resistance level last week, leading to renewed selling across the market. Over the past 24 hours, BTC dropped 2.6% to $92,550, triggering a broader sell-off. Data from CoinGlass indicates that long liquidations accounted for $788 million of the total, reflecting bearish sentiment among traders.
Additionally, the postponement of a crypto market structure bill to late January has contributed to the overall negative outlook. On-chain data shared by market analyst Tracer shows coordinated selling by large entities. Insiders sold 22,918 BTC, while exchanges including Coinbase, Bybit, Binance, and Wintermute sold a combined total of over 12,000 BTC. In total, whales and exchanges sold more than $4 billion worth of Bitcoin in the last hour.
The EU's move to escalate the tariff war responds to Trump's bid to take over Greenland. The bloc is targeting US companies with its proposed tariffs. This follows Trump's threat to impose an additional 10% tariff on European countries starting February 1 if no deal is reached on purchasing Greenland, for which the Trump administration has offered $700 billion.
Market participants observed that large-scale trade measures often impact risk assets first, as investors factor in weaker growth and increased uncertainty. Consequently, Bitcoin and the broader crypto market are experiencing volatility. Meanwhile, safe-haven assets like gold have strengthened, with gold futures reaching a record high of $4,660 per ounce and silver surpassing $94 per ounce.