Bitcoin Holds $70K Amid Middle East Tensions and Rising Inflation Concerns
Bitcoin (BTC $67,842.00) traded just above $70,000 on Friday as heightened tensions in the Middle East pushed oil prices higher and traders reassessed inflation ahead of the U.S. jobs report later in the day.
The cryptocurrency briefly climbed to nearly $74,000 on Wednesday but failed to sustain momentum in a low-liquidity zone, falling back alongside U.S. equities.
Brent crude hit $85 per barrel—a roughly 42% increase since the start of the year—driven by escalating conflict in the Middle East. Rising energy prices have triggered a reassessment of European inflation expectations, with money markets now pricing in a potential European Central Bank rate hike by year-end, reversing earlier expectations of 2025 rate cuts. Higher interest rates could weigh on bitcoin and crypto markets, as investors rotate toward safer, yield-bearing assets.
Altcoin Market Weakens
DeFi tokens MORPHO and JUP led Friday’s selloff, falling 2–3% as traders shifted into dollars. Privacy tokens Zcash (ZEC) and Decred (DCR) dropped 6%, with losses accelerating since midnight UTC. Meanwhile, OKX’s OKB surged 23% following a partnership with Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) to launch tokenized stocks and crypto futures, while KITE and RIVER rose roughly 15% in the past 24 hours.
Derivatives Show Cautious Positioning
Bitcoin open interest rose to $16.16 billion from $15 billion last week, reflecting renewed speculative activity. Retail funding remains steady at 0–10%, though Binance shows -2.5%, signaling localized short hedging. Options markets indicate cautious optimism, with the 24-hour call/put split at 51/49 and the one-week 25-delta skew cooling to 8% from 15%. Near-term implied volatility spiked into backwardation, pointing to an expected short-term volatility event, while longer-term IV remains around 50%. Coinglass reports $257 million in 24-hour liquidations, with BTC ($121M), ETH ($51M), and other tokens ($15M) leading. Binance identifies $71,600 as a key liquidation level if prices rise.
Crypto markets remain fragile, as investors weigh geopolitical risks, inflation, and short-term volatility across spot and derivatives markets.
