Crypto Market Shoots in Short Covering After Trump Declares Pause to US-Iran War

Crypto market see a sharp bounce with Bitcoin price reclaiming $70,000 after Trump announces easing measures in the ongoing US-Iran war. Bitcoin and altcoins have shot up in major short covering with liquidations soaring to $800 million. This statement from US President Donald Trump has led to a strong upside in global market after a brutal crash in Asia earlier on March 23.

US-Iran Postponed Triggers Crypto Market Upside

Donald Trump announced a five-day pause on planned U.S. strikes against Iran. In his Truth Social message, the US President cited ongoing diplomatic discussions.

Trump said the United States has held “very good and productive conversations” with Iran over the past two days. He also signaled potential movement toward a de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East. In his message, the US President added:

I HAVE INSTRUCTED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO POSTPONE ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST IRANIAN POWER PLANTS AND ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A FIVE DAY PERIOD, SUBJECT TO THE SUCCESS OF THE ONGOING MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS.

The development was enough to push crypto market higher with Bitcoin quickly reclaiming $70,000 levels. Altcoins are also showing strength with Ethereum (ETH), XRP, Solana (SOL), BNB Coin (BNB) pumping 3% each today.

As per data from Coinglass, the 24-hour liquidations have shot to $794 million. Of these the long liquidations are $425 million, while the short liquidations at $368 million. A total of 203,535 traders have been liquidated, according to on-chain data.

Crypto Market Inflows Continue Last Week

Digital asset investment products recorded $230 million in inflows last week. This reflects a slowdown compared to previous weeks amid shifting market sentiment.

While some market participants attributed the softer inflows to ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Analysts pointed to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting as the more likely driver. Data from CoinShares showed strong inflows of $635 million early in the week, followed by $405 million in outflows after the FOMC meeting.

Bitcoin attracted the most inflows at $219 million, while short Bitcoin products also saw $6 million in inflows. This highlights continued divergence in investor positioning. Among altcoins, Solana recorded $17 million in inflows, extending its seven-week streak to $136 million.

Moreover, Ethereum saw $27.5 million in outflows, ending a three-week streak of inflows. Other assets such as Chainlink ($4.6 million) and Hyperliquid ($4.5 million) also posted modest gains.

Tom Lee Predicts Market Bottom, Bitcoin Decouples from S&P 500

BitMine chairman Tom Lee said historical data show that financial markets often reach their bottom early during periods of war, rather than at the end of conflicts.

Lee noted that in the last eight major war events, equities were typically priced in fear and uncertainty quickly. Thus, he predicts that a crypto market bottom will form in the early stage of the crisis. Lee added that as time progresses, markets tend to shift from risk-off sentiment toward identifying new opportunities.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin has shown a notable divergence from traditional markets. Since October, BTC has declined while the S&P 500 has continued to rise. It also marks the longest decoupling between crypto and equities since 2020.