March 2 News: The sudden escalation of tensions in the Middle East has triggered turbulence in global financial markets. After the U.S. and Israel launched large-scale airstrikes against Iran, news of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei being attacked and killed spread rapidly. Rising geopolitical risks caused energy and safe-haven asset prices to soar, while the cryptocurrency market experienced significant volatility, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP all declining.
Following the news, Bitcoin briefly rebounded to around $68,000. Some investors initially believed that Iran’s power structure might be in transition, and that short-term tensions could ease, leading to a brief rally in risk assets. However, this optimistic sentiment did not last long. As U.S. President Trump stated that the U.S. military would continue airstrikes against Iran, market risk appetite quickly cooled, and digital assets entered a retracement phase.
Data shows that Bitcoin, after surging to $68,000, fell back to approximately $66,249, a daily decline of about 1%. Despite maintaining a gain of around 1.5% over the past week, it has nearly 20% decline over the past month. Meanwhile, Ethereum briefly broke above $2,000 but retreated to about $1,947, down approximately 2.4% for the day; XRP also weakened, currently around $1.35, nearly 3% lower than the previous trading day.
Unlike the crypto market, traditional safe-haven assets strengthened significantly. Concerns that Middle East conflict could threaten global energy supplies led to the largest single-day increase in international oil prices in four years. Gold prices also surged, reaching near $5,382, with a 24-hour increase of about 2%. Silver prices rose to around $95 as well.
Orbit Markets analyst Caroline Mauron pointed out that the current market focus is on the energy sector and the Strait of Hormuz. This strait accounts for about one-fifth of global oil transportation. If the situation worsens, it could trigger a chain reaction affecting global inflation and financial markets. In this context, short-term movements in cryptocurrencies are more driven by macro risk sentiment.
Additionally, Iran denied reports of resuming nuclear negotiations with the U.S., further complicating tensions. As investors continue to shift toward gold and energy assets for safety, digital assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum may remain highly volatile in the short term. The market will next focus on developments in Middle East tensions and how changes in energy prices impact risk assets.
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