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There’s no doubt about it, the cryptocurrency market has been absolutely hammered in 2026. Today, Bitcoin (BTC) price slipped back under $60,000 in a catastrophe for the short-lived recovery in its technical structure. And for those diamond-handed gems still holding on in the space, the pained anxiety of why is crypto down now, and ‘will crypto recover?’ is still front and center.
Well, let’s step back for a second. Bitcoin price is still over $50,000, and I’m bullish.
For those of you who remember the pits of despair in 2022, when FTX had ripped the trading stack out of your pocket and dumped a cascading devaluation on your dreams, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at $59,188 isn’t that bad, with Bitcoin price returning to the exact same range it inhabited in the excitement before the last halving event and still 10% clean of likely lower supports.
(Source – BTC USD Price, TradingView)
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Why is Crypto Going Down Today? It’s Not Iran, It’s Inflation
Let’s jump right into it. Despite the joy of the World Cup, we have not yet achieved a peaceful resolution to the US-initiated conflict in the Gulf, which continues to induce widespread fear in the market.
In the latest move in the saga, the US Senate has voted to stop the war in Iran, and while it’s largely a symbolic crescendo from the growing chorus of anti-war voices, the takeaway for the market is clear: domestic pressure is building outside the gates of the White House, and Trump’s room to maneuver is shrinking.
“Losers!”, the esteemed President remarked in a scathing critique of anti-war GOP Senators on X.
Whilst in the Gulf, Trump’s 14-point peace plan with Iran is still predictably hitting speed bumps, as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) argues with Tehran over inspector access to nuclear sites, the Israeli’s continue to engage Lebanon in direct bilateral peace talks already superseded by Trump’s renewed Iran negotiations over whether there will or will not be a toll in Hormuz. Organized chaos? That would be a blessing.
Despite the hypernormalisation of risk, oil markets themselves look happy that the deal is done, with Brent crude now back just $3 above pre-war price levels. And as they say, the rest is politics.
(Source – Brent Crude Oil, TradingEconomics)
So if the market isn’t dumping because of another tumultuous twist in the looming existential crisis in the Gulf, what’s going on?
Well, there are two main forces behind Today’s risk-off move. The first of which is the latest inflation data, which just dropped, and it’s not looking pretty.
The Federal Reserve’s most-watched inflation gauge slammed a three-year high Today, as the Commerce Department revealed consumer prices soared a shocking +4.1% in May 2026.
(Source –US CPI, TradingEconomics)
Now you might be thinking, “Wait, oil prices have fallen, why is inflation still high?” And the answer is more nuanced than the lagging market impact of May’s peak oil pricing.
Back in April, J.P. Morgan’s Chief Global Strategist, David Kelly, flagged that short-term inflation is partly attributable to the so-called “tsunami of spending” flooding into AI development, infrastructure, and usage.
Kevin Warsh knows this; it’s nothing new. He himself claimed that the productive growth and savings from AI would eventually lead to AI-powered disinflation.
But it’s clear Kelly believes there is little prospect of Warsh flying in with lower rates for relief, with existential risk from Iran, mid-terms, and tariffs creating more ‘if’ conditions than certainty, and this remains the case as of Warsh’ first FOMC meeting last week, which saw rates hold steady.
“It still looks like May was the peak in the latest bout of inflation, and falling inflation for the rest of the year could be just enough to keep the Fed on hold,” claimed Kelly in his insights on Warsh’s first FOMC.
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Inflation Was the trigger, but Tomorrow’s $10Bn Bitcoin Options Expiry is the Smoking Gun
If macro stress on the horizon triggered the downside move below $60,000 earlier Today, then an upcoming mass options expiry event Tomorrow could well be the smoking gun, especially paired with a low-volume bear-market summer weekend.
$10Bn worth of Bitcoin options is set to expire on Deribit Tomorrow, representing about 37% of open interest in the entire Bitcoin market, and with the majority of call contracts now out of the money, it seems put positions will carpe diem with thin liquidity on the last weekend of June, and Bitcoin price will follow.
This is especially true when we remember that the macro stress is likely to compound this bearish sentiment, with contracting liquidity never a good sign for crypto markets.
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