📉 $110 Billion Wiped Out in Hours: Crypto Market Plunges as Bitcoin Breaks Down and Altcoins Spiral

A sharp wave of selling tore through digital assets today, erasing $110 billion from the global crypto market in a single session and pushing traders back into risk-off mode as macro pressure, technical breakdowns, and project-level shocks collided at once.

The total cryptocurrency market capitalization has now fallen to $2.18 trillion, losing a crucial structural support zone near $2.22 trillion — a level analysts had viewed as the line separating consolidation from deeper correction.

The selloff intensified after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 15% increase in global tariffs, rattling financial markets and prompting investors to rotate capital into safer instruments.

Crypto, often treated as a high-beta risk asset during geopolitical stress, reacted swiftly. The broad decline mirrored weakness across equities and speculative growth sectors, reinforcing how tightly digital assets remain linked to global liquidity conditions.

If selling momentum continues, analysts warn the total market cap could drift toward its next support region near $2.13 trillion.

Bitcoin led the downturn after slipping below $64,142, breaking out of a symmetrical triangle pattern that had compressed price action for weeks.

Technical projections now point to:

The loss of the $65,000 threshold has weakened short-term structure, increasing the probability of cascading liquidations — a familiar dynamic during prior corrective phases.

Still, analysts say recovery is possible if Bitcoin can reclaim $64,142 and stabilize above it. A move back toward $67,000 would invalidate the immediate bearish setup and restore confidence.

Among major altcoins, Bitcoin Cash suffered the steepest decline, tumbling 15% in just 24 hours to trade near $484.

The asset now hovers precariously above the $480 support level, while technical indicators warn of a looming Death Cross — when the 50-day moving average falls below the 200-day average, often signaling prolonged weakness.

If confirmed, analysts see downside risk extending toward $458, though a sentiment-driven bounce could still push prices back toward $516.

Beyond price action, industry-specific turmoil added another layer of concern.

Decentralized finance platforms Step Finance and SolanaFloor announced they are shutting down immediately following a January treasury hack, after failing to secure new funding or acquisition offers.

Step Finance said it will initiate a buyback program for STEP holders, while Remora rToken holders will be able to redeem assets backed 1:1, attempting to contain fallout from the breach.

The closures highlight how tightening capital conditions are making recovery harder for mid-tier crypto projects once able to rely on venture support.

Market nerves were further tested when USD1 briefly lost its dollar peg, falling to $0.994 before recovering within minutes.

Issuer World Liberty Financial later said hackers compromised cofounder accounts to spread misinformation and profit from short positions — a reminder of how quickly sentiment can shift in a fragile environment.

Though the depeg was short-lived, it contributed to the day’s broader sense of instability.

Today’s decline reflects more than a single catalyst. Instead, it represents a convergence of pressures:

This multi-layered stress has made the current zone especially critical for determining whether crypto enters a controlled correction — or something more severe.

For sentiment to stabilize, analysts say three elements must align:

Without those, the market risks drifting lower as liquidity thins and confidence erodes.

Crypto has weathered shocks before — from regulatory crackdowns to exchange collapses — but this episode underscores how deeply the asset class is now intertwined with global macro forces.

What was once seen as an alternative financial system is increasingly behaving like a leveraged expression of global risk sentiment.

And for now, that sentiment has turned decisively cautious.