U.S. President Donald Trump has signaled plans to escalate military action against Iran as early as today. He also revealed that the U.S. is considering destroying new areas and groups of people in the country as tensions escalate. Meanwhile, Bitcoin is facing new selling pressure as the U.S.-Iran war enters its second week.
Trump Vows To Hit Iran Hard As U.S.-Iran War Enters Week 2
In a Truth Social post, the U.S. president said that they will hit Iran very hard today. “Under serious consideration for complete destruction and certain death, because of Iran’s bad behavior, are areas and groups of people that were not considered for targeting up until this moment in time,” he added.
This signals that the U.S-Iran war could escalate as it enters the second week. Trump also claimed victory for Iran’s decision to stop attacking Gulf countries, except if the U.S. launches attacks against them from those countries. The U.S. president stated that Iran only made this promise “because of the relentless U.S. and Israeli attack.”
A deal between the U.S. and Iran looks unlikely anytime soon as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said that Iran will not surrender. This came in response to Trump’s statement yesterday in which he said that he won’t make a deal with Iran unless it is for their unconditional surrender.
As the U.S.-Iran war continues to escalate, crypto traders are now bracing for it to last beyond this month. Polymarket data shows only a 25% chance of a ceasefire by March 31. It is also worth noting that oil prices continue to rise due to the war, which is putting downward pressure on crypto prices.
U.S. oil prices rose above $90 per barrel yesterday, for the first time since 2023. There are concerns that the rising oil prices could drive inflation higher, which is a negative for risk assets. As CoinGape reported, crypto traders predict that oil prices could rise above $100 this month as the war drags on.
Bitcoin Is Facing New Selling Pressure
A CryptoQuant analysis revealed that Bitcoin is facing new selling pressure from short-term holders following its recovery earlier this week, with the price rallying to a one-month high of $74,000. The analysis noted that these cohorts do not seem convinced by the recovery and prefer to take profits quickly.
These short-term holders have contributed to the recent Bitcoin price decline to $68,000. These cohorts sent over 27,000 BTC to exchanges, ranking among the largest in recent months. Santiment also flagged selling pressure from BTC whales who liquidated their holdings as the price touched $74,000 earlier this week despite the U.S.-Iran war.
Meanwhile, the only short-term holders who are currently able to realize profits from their holdings are those who accumulated between one week and one month ago, when the price was lower. Their realized price is around $68,000, the CryptoQuant analysis noted.