Bitcoin and altcoins tumble double-digits – Here’s why

The prices of Bitcoin and altcoins such as ADA, SOL and ETH have fallen by double digits in the last 24 hours.

The prices of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies like ADA, SOL, and ETH have fallen by double digits in the last 24 hours. At the time of writing, Bitcoin is down almost 10% and trading around $84,000.

Ethereum is hit even harder, briefly dropping below $2,100. Solana is down 18% to $137, and Cardano has fallen as much as 21.5%. The total crypto market cap has dropped about 11.8%.

On Sunday, Bitcoin looked safe after U.S. President Trump reiterated plans for a crypto reserve made up of BTC, ETH, SOL, ADA and XRP.

With the opening of U.S. exchanges on March 3, traders jumped in to cash in the gains from this so-called "Trump-Pump 2.0" in droves. Each of the mentioned cryptos has largely given back its recent gains.

The price drop comes after softer U.S. economic data and a broad sell-off on U.S. stock markets. After Donald Trump confirmed import tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China would go ahead, the S&P 500 fell 1.76% yesterday, while the Nasdaq slid 2.64%.

Meanwhile, the Atlanta Fed lowered its forecast for U.S. Q1 2025 GDP to a 2.8% decline. Investors are starting to price in a recession.

Yesterday’s trading day seems to confirm the crypto market is now fully tied to macroeconomic developments. Only when this situation stabilizes can Bitcoin and other cryptos potentially recover.

Investors may be hoping for fresh cues from the crypto top in the White House on March 7, where crypto czar David Sacks could present a more concrete plan for the crypto reserve.