Trump's tariff hikes cause traders to seek safety, crypto markets plummet

Crypto traders slashed their positions in a range of tokens in response to the tariffs announced by U.S. President Trump over the weekend.

Ethereum, the second-largest digital asset by market value, plunged 27% to $2,135 in Asian markets on Monday morning before narrowing its losses, data showed. This was the token's largest intraday drop since May 2021. Negative market sentiment also weighed on other cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin falling nearly 6% at one point and smaller tokens falling even more.

Caroline Bowler, CEO of BTC Markets, said: "Trump's tariff war is affecting the entire market, and concerns that trade wars and stagflation will trigger a recession are affecting all cryptocurrencies and Bitcoin."