Major coins showed significant gains during the European morning amid reports that Israel and Iran may have reached a ceasefire agreement.
Bitcoin rose more than 5% since Monday evening, trading near $105,600 as at 07:00 UTC on Tuesday 24 June. Altcoins, including Solana, XRP, and Ethereum, also notched gains during the same period.
Qatar retaliation
Cryptocurrencies showed signs of weakness over the weekend, with Bitcoin briefly falling below $99,000 after US military strikes on Iran. Having weathered the initial shock of warplanes bombing Iranian nuclear facilities, investors played down the risk of escalation by acquiring assets such as crypto and equities at prices close to pre-attack levels.
In response, Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz and launched a rocket attack against a US military base in neighboring Qatar at 16:39 UTC on Monday, sparking fears of escalation. However, the Qatari military managed to intercept almost all projectiles, preventing any American casualties.
"CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE!" US President Donald Trump wrote on his social media platform shortly after Iran's strike in Qatar. "It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE ... at which point the War will be considered, ENDED!”
In a statement, Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed Israel’s agreement to the ceasefire. “In light of the achievement of the operation's goals, and in full coordination with President Trump, Israel agreed to the President's offer for a bilateral ceasefire.” Iranian authorities also confirmed their ascension via state-run television.
Oil declines
Oil declined following the announcement. Brent crude futures fell from above $70 at the time of President’s announcement to a low of about $67.41 a barrel at 00:00 UTC, after already sliding about 12% on Monday and hitting their lowest level since June 12.
Global stock markets showed upward momentum, while the VIX "fear index" – a measure of investors' expectation for volatility in US equities – plunged, suggesting calmer markets immediately ahead.
With geopolitical tensions potentially easing, users on the prediction market Myriad now assign a 79% probability that Bitcoin will hold above the $100,000 level through the end of the working week.
Fragile peace
Nonetheless, the cease-fire related to the most recent violence remains considerably more fragile, amid a years-long conflict based on deep-rooted concerns, than President Trump’s initial words on Tuesday would suggest.
Amid reports of Israel and Iran continuing to attack each other with missiles that caused four fatalities in the Jewish state and killed nine in Iran, Trump's apparent frustration could be heard in remarks to reporters later in the day:
“We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f--- they’re doing,” Trump said.
