Bitcoin rebounded to around $66,500 after a turbulent weekend in which geopolitical shocks tied to Iran sparked roughly $300 million in crypto liquidations. While oil prices surged and equity futures weakened, several DeFi tokens showed notable resilience.
The largest digital asset has gained 1.1% since midnight UTC and is up more than 5% from its weekend low near $63,000. Despite last week’s volatility — with price swings between $70,000 and $62,500 — bitcoin continues to trade within the broader range that has persisted since early February.
The weekend’s price action followed military strikes that reportedly killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, prompting retaliatory attacks and raising concerns about potential disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil and LNG flows.
According to trading firm QCP, the initial market reaction triggered approximately $300 million in long liquidations. However, the extent of forced selling was relatively moderate, suggesting traders had already adjusted positioning in anticipation of heightened volatility.
Traditional markets reacted sharply. Gold and silver climbed to their highest levels in over a month, while oil jumped 13% to $82 per barrel — the strongest reading since July 2024. U.S. equity index futures moved lower, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts falling 1.1% and 1.5%, respectively, since midnight UTC.
Importantly, the bulk of crypto’s losses occurred on Saturday while U.S. markets were closed, indicating the asset class absorbed much of the shock ahead of traditional financial markets reopening.
Derivatives landscape
Positioning data suggest stress remains contained. Total crypto futures open interest has slipped 2% to $93.78 billion, still above the recent low of $92.40 billion.
More than $300 million in leveraged trades were liquidated over a 24-hour period, with bullish positions accounting for the majority. Perpetual funding rates for bitcoin and ether have edged slightly negative, signaling a mild bearish bias but no signs of capitulation.
Volatility metrics reinforce that view. Bitcoin’s 30-day annualized implied volatility index (BVIV) remains steady at approximately 58.8%, within last week’s range. Ether’s volatility index shows similar stability.
On Deribit, short-dated bitcoin puts traded at an 8%–10% implied volatility premium over calls, reflecting elevated demand for downside protection. The $60,000 put remains the most actively traded contract, with block flows highlighting interest in put spreads.
Token performance
The broader altcoin market largely mirrored bitcoin’s moves, though certain DeFi tokens outperformed. Lending protocol token MORPHO extended its strong two-week run, rising 5% over the past 24 hours and 2.6% since midnight UTC.
Other decentralized finance tokens, including JUP, AAVE and LDO, also posted gains, suggesting speculative appetite remains intact despite the broader flight toward traditional safe havens.
Hyperliquid’s HYPE token surged more than 29% on Saturday, breaking its February downtrend. Although it slipped 3.8% on Monday, it continues to hold above the key $30 support level.
In contrast, WLFI — the DeFi token associated with U.S. President Donald Trump’s family — extended its decline, falling 2.5% since midnight and more than 44% from mid-January highs amid a pattern of lower highs and lower lows.
Among CoinDesk’s sector benchmarks, the DeFi Select (DFX) Index was the only one in positive territory over the past 24 hours. The Computing Select Index (CPUS) and the Smart Contract Platform Select Capped Index (SCPXC) were the weakest performers, declining 1.87% and 1.71%, respectively.
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