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Bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies sink as Israel escalates Iran stand-off with air strikes

Over US$1 billion worth of long positions across all cryptocurrencies were liquidated in the past 24 hours, according to Coinglass data

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Bitcoin slid as much as 3 per cent early on Friday in Singapore to dip below US$103,000 before paring losses. Photo: Shutterstock
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies sank after Israel launched air strikes on Iran in a major escalation.
The largest digital asset slid as much as 3 per cent on Friday morning in Singapore to dip below US$103,000 before paring losses, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Second-ranked token ether had at one point shed about 7.6 per cent of its value.

The sell-off came after explosions were heard in Tehran, according to local media.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said he was declaring a special state of emergency due to Israel’s “pre-emptive strike against Iran”. Israel is anticipating a retaliatory drone and missile attack, Katz said.

“Cryptocurrency is reacting negatively to news of Israel strikes in Iran, in line with major risk assets,” said Caroline Mauron, co-founder of Orbit Markets, a provider of liquidity for crypto derivatives. “We expect to see technical support around US$101,000, but geopolitical news will drive price action from here in the short-term.”

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