Bitcoin fell to $79,074 late Monday in Asian time, falling nearly $1,500 from the intraday high of $80,594 that marked the highest reading since Jan. 31.
The setback comes as Iran’s Fars news agency claimed two missiles hit a US patrol boat near Jask Island, after the vessel reportedly ignored Iranian warnings to leave its territorial waters. Brent crude jumped more than 5% to trade above $113 a barrel before paring the gain.
The United States denied this report shortly after and stated that no American ships had been hit. Oil and stock futures pared their initial moves following the denial, but bitcoin maintained its decline as traders factored in the fragility of the ceasefire in effect since early April.
Other majors followed bitcoin lower from intraday highs but remained positive on the day.
Ether was trading at $2,341, up 1.2% over 24 hours after touching $2,368 earlier. Solana stood at $84.08, up just 0.2% the day after its Monday debut at $85.14. XRP slipped to $1.40 and BNB to $623. Dogecoin held on to its gains better than most, up 2.3% on the day to $0.1102, with the weekly figure still at 12.1%.
The escalation came hours after President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that the United States would begin escorting ships stuck in the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz starting Monday, an operation dubbed Project Freedom that involves guided-missile destroyers, aircraft and drones.
Iran responded by announcing that it had “redefined the zone of control” in Hormuz, extending its claimed maritime borders to Fujairah and signaling that Tehran would regulate maritime traffic in the region independent of U.S. operations.
Bitcoin topped $80,000 for the first time since January, with $301 million in shorts liquidated as the move unfolded earlier Monday. The Senate’s compromise on the Clarity Act’s stable yield, released Friday, added to the pro-risk tone earlier this week.
Whether the US denial continues or new confirmations emerge from both sides will likely determine the rest of the US session.
