Bitcoin Crashes Below $93K: Trump Tariff Storm Triggers $870M Liquidation Massacre

Bitcoin plunged to $92,500 during Asian trading hours Monday as President Donald Trump's fresh tariff threats against eight European nations sparked a massive selloff across digital asset markets. The sudden price collapse wiped out $870 million in leveraged positions within 24 hours, marking the first major crypto flash crash of 2026.

Trump announced Saturday that the United States would impose a 10% tariff on goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland starting February 1. The levy escalates to 25% by June 1 unless these nations agree to negotiate the potential U.S. acquisition of Greenland. According to CoinDesk, Bitcoin dropped 2.5% since late Sunday, slipping below the crucial $94,500 support level and risking a return to its mid-November trading range.

The selloff triggered fears of a prolonged sideways movement in Bitcoin rather than sharp rallies. Capital inflows into Bitcoin have dried up as liquidity rotated to traditional stocks and precious metals. The diversification of liquidity channels has made timing market inflows increasingly difficult for traders.

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Long Positions Obliterated as Bulls Retreat

The crypto market pullback hit bulls hard, forcing out leveraged long bets worth nearly $800 million in 24 hours. CoinGlass data reveals $787 million worth of long positions were liquidated, while only $83 million worth of short positions faced closure. The largest single liquidation occurred on Hyperliquid, where a BTCUSDT position worth $25.83 million was wiped out.

Bitcoin's open interest increased by 0.65% in 24 hours, while Ethereum held flat. Other major tokens including Solana, XRP, Cardano, Dogecoin, SUI and Litecoin saw open interest drop 8%-13%, pointing to massive capital outflows and risk aversion. The 30-day implied volatility in BTC and ETH has not seen a meaningful rise, suggesting traders don't expect fireworks in the near-term.

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Altcoins suffered even steeper losses. The altcoin-dominant CoinDesk 80 Index (CD80) traded down 4.64% over the past 24 hours, outperforming the bitcoin-heavy CoinDesk 20 (CD20) which fell 2.5%. Ethereum shed 4.9% of its value, while Solana plummeted 8.6%. The selloff knocked approximately $110 billion off the crypto market's total value.

EU Retaliatory Package Threatens $100B Trade War

The European Union responded swiftly to Trump's announcement, with EU ambassadors convening an emergency meeting Sunday in Brussels. Officials agreed on a retaliatory package of counter-tariffs worth €93 billion ($107.7 billion) on US imports, potentially restricting American companies' access to the bloc's market.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa issued a joint statement affirming the European Union's full support for Denmark and the people of Greenland. An emergency summit is scheduled for Thursday to finalize the EU's response strategy.

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Gold reached $4,690 per ounce during early Asian trading, marking a new all-time high, while silver surged above $94 per ounce for the first time. Bitcoin failed to mirror the precious metals' move to the upside, currently trading around $93,000.

Volatility differential between Deribit-listed BTC call and puts continues to remain negative across time frames, a sign of persistent downside fears. Block flows for BTC have been balanced with traders chasing both put spreads and call spreads. The Fear and Greed Index in the market dropped to 45 from Thursday's high of 61, indicating a shift in sentiment among traders.

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Analysts remain divided on whether this signals the start of a prolonged "crypto winter" or a temporary macro-driven shock. Bearish voices point to post-halving years historically bringing weaker performance, while optimists argue Bitcoin's growing role as "digital gold" supported by ETF inflows could provide resilience. The market's reaction was sharp, amplified by existing caution and leverage rather than a collapse in fundamentals.