Altcoins took a significant hit as traders reacted to renewed U.S.-China tariff tensions, large Bitcoin whale sell-offs, and a general risk-off sentiment sweeping the market.
Cryptocurrencies opened the weekend in the red, with Dogecoin (DOGE) leading major losses, plunging over 8%, while Pepe (PEPE) dropped 12%.
Bitcoin slipped more than 2%, falling below $104,000 and trading around $103,600 during Saturday’s Asian afternoon session. Meanwhile, the CoinDesk 20 index fell 4.2% over the past 24 hours.
Ether (ETH) declined nearly 4%, while XRP, BNB Chain (BNB), Cardano’s ADA, and Solana (SOL) all posted losses between 2% and 5%. Among the top 100 tokens, only Cronos Network’s CRO bucked the trend, gaining 12% despite no clear catalyst.
Analysts pointed to the renewed tensions between the U.S. and China as a key factor behind the sell-off.
“Markets turned red on Friday amid fresh concerns over tariffs,” Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, told CoinDesk via email. “President Trump accused China on social media of breaking the recent trade truce, while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent acknowledged that talks with Beijing have stalled.”
Investor caution was also evident in the derivatives market. Open interest in Bitcoin futures has surged 51% since April, while options volume has skyrocketed 126%, according to Deribit data.
Notably, Bitcoin whale wallets — which had been accumulating BTC steadily throughout the year — have recently shifted to net selling, moving coins back onto exchanges, a classic signal of profit-taking.
“Bitcoin’s support appears firm around $103,000 in the near term,” Kuptsikevich added. However, with ongoing tariff tensions and whales reducing risk, traders are preparing for heightened volatility ahead.
