Market Turmoil as Bitcoin Surges Amidst Global Sell-Off
Bitcoin (BTC) has surged past the $79,000 mark as trading commenced on Monday morning in Asia. This uptick in Bitcoin’s price comes amidst chaotic trading conditions across East Asia, where a global sell-off is wreaking havoc on financial markets. The CoinDesk 20 (CD20), which tracks the performance of the largest digital assets, has experienced a significant decline, falling by 8%.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index has plummeted over 8% during mid-morning trading. Similarly, Shanghai’s SSE Composite Index has dropped by 7%, while Taipei’s TAIEX has seen a staggering decline of 9%. Major technology stocks in the region have been particularly hard-hit, with Alibaba shares in Hong Kong plummeting by 12% and Tencent experiencing a 9% decrease. In Taipei, TSMC stocks fell by 10% shortly after trading began, triggering the exchange’s price variation limit, which momentarily halts trading in either direction.
This significant correction for TSMC occurs against the backdrop of recent announcements from the White House stating that semiconductors sourced from Taiwan will be exempt from tariffs. However, uncertainty looms over the future of the CHIPS Act, which has been instrumental in financing the construction of semiconductor manufacturing facilities in the United States.
The major downturn in TSMC’s stock is likely indicative of the potential volatility expected for Nvidia (NVDA) when U.S. markets open. Analysts have noted that NVDA has exhibited greater volatility than both Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH) in recent times. In the cryptocurrency market, Ethereum has also seen a sharp decline of 11% on the day, while XRP has dropped by 9%, and Solana’s SOL has decreased by 10%.
Notably, lending protocols such as Maker (MKR) and Aave (AAVE) have emerged as some of the worst performers, each experiencing a staggering drop of around 14%. According to liquidation data from CoinGlass, approximately $675 million in long positions were liquidated in the past 12 hours, in stark contrast to $123 million in short positions.
In a related note, the Presidential meme coin, TRUMP, has seen a decline of 13%, as reported by CoinDesk data, positioning it among the more significant laggards in the current market landscape.
