Bitcoin Slides as Trump's New Tariffs Spark Market Selloff

The cryptocurrency tumbled as much as 4% to $107,367 before paring losses.

President Donald Trump's proposal of sweeping new tariffs on European goods sparked a sharp selloff in Bitcoin on Friday, as traders reacted to fresh U.S.-EU trade tensions and a wave of liquidations hit crypto markets.

The cryptocurrency tumbled as much as 4% to $107,367 before paring losses. At last check, Bitcoin was trading around $108,750, with $110,000 now acting as a key resistance level.

The drop followed Trump's post on Truth Social stating that trade talks with the EU were "going nowhere" and recommending a 50% tariff on European imports beginning June 1.

Crypto markets responded accordingly, with more than $300 million in leveraged crypto positions being liquidated in just four hours, according to data from CoinGlass, part of a total of over $500 million liquidated in the past 24 hours.

Most of the damage came from long bets—traders who were positioned for a continued rally.

"This was a classic flush," said pseudonymous trader Skew in a post on X. "Long leverage wiped, spot selling kicked in. All headline-driven."

Bitcoin derivatives saw nearly $107 million in long liquidations, while Ethereum followed with $87 million. Solana, Dogecoin, and SUI each saw $10 million to $18 million wiped out.

The selloff extended to altcoins, with Ether, XRP, and Cardano losing between 3% and 4%, and smaller tokens like Uniswap and SUI down as much as 7%.

This volatility also hit high-stakes traders. James Wynn, who recently drew attention for placing a $1.1 billion long bet on BTC with 40x leverage on Hyperliquid, was currently sitting on $7.5 million in unrealized losses. If Bitcoin drops below $102,000, the entire position could be liquidated.

Some traders were still keeping an eye on key support levels. "We need to hold the green zone," wrote Crypto Caesar, displaying a chart that showed a cluster of support just below $110K.

Others were bracing for more turbulence as macro uncertainty built. The Kobeissi Letter highlighted the challenge for Trump's administration: "Too much tariff pressure unravels basis trades. Too little, and inflation expectations spike. The balancing act just got harder."

With the Federal Reserve in no hurry to cut rates, the stakes are rising across risk assets. And for now, at least, Bitcoin is once again bearing the brunt of the geopolitical fallout.