Bitcoin dropped more than 5% below $65,000 on February 23 as Trump announced a 15% global tariff rate, triggering $2.56 billion in liquidations across crypto markets.
Bitcoin tumbled below $65,000 on February 23, 2026, as President Trump announced a 15% global tariff rate and tech stocks cratered on mounting recession fears.
The move marked a sharp reversal from the start of 2026, when Bitcoin was trading near $94,000. The cryptocurrency has now fallen 26% year-to-date and sits 47% below its October 2025 peak of approximately $126,000. Over a single weekend, the crypto market saw $2.56 billion in liquidations as overleveraged positions unwound.
Bitcoin ETFs turned net sellers for the first time since their launch in January 2024. BlackRock's IBIT, Fidelity's FBTC, and other major products all experienced redemptions rather than inflows. The shift signals a fundamental reversal in institutional sentiment. For over a year, these products had channeled steady capital into Bitcoin. Now they were becoming exits.
The technical damage compounded the losses. Bitcoin broke below its 365-day moving average for the first time since March 2022. That level traditionally serves as a crucial support zone for the asset class. Its breach triggered both algorithmic selling and manual capitulation among traders who had held through the prior bull run.
Geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran pushed investors toward cash and away from risk assets. Microsoft stock led the decline in tech equities, pulling down the Nasdaq and rattling confidence in growth assets across the board. Crypto markets, historically more volatile than equities, absorbed the shock with greater velocity.
Tariff uncertainty created a secondary feedback loop. Companies dependent on supply chains reacted with immediate selling, which fed into margin calls and forced liquidations. The contagion spread from equities into crypto with predictable force. Investors who had borrowed against Bitcoin or Ethereum collateral found themselves unable to meet margin requirements as those assets lost value in real time.
The $65,000 level tested support from the prior year's trading ranges. Some analysts suggested the market was repricing Bitcoin's correlation with risk-on assets. When tech stocks fall and uncertainty rises, Bitcoin—despite its narrative as a hedge—tends to trade more like growth equity than like gold. This behavior repeated across the February decline.
The March 2022 period, when Bitcoin had previously broken the 365-day moving average, preceded a recovery that took months. Historical parallels offered little comfort to current holders. Market conditions had changed. The narrative had shifted. Bitcoin was no longer viewed as a safe haven by many institutional investors who had only held it for weeks or months.
Liquidations continued unabated across derivative platforms. Positions were being closed at forced prices. Spot buying from strategic buyers like MicroStrategy might have provided a floor, but the company's share price fell alongside Bitcoin's, straining its access to capital. The feedback loop showed no signs of breaking on February 23 or in the immediate days following.
