coindesk.com
Bitcoin BTC$91,261.17 struggled to break free from its tight range on Monday, dipping below below $91,000 as Donald Trump said he would impose a 25% tariff against all countries that trade with Iran.
"Effective immediately, any country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America," he said in a social post.
The late afternoon action followed another rangebound day for BTC, reversing twice from the $92,000 level through the day, up 0.8% over the past 24 hours. Ether ETH$3,099.53 hovered below $3,100, down 0.6% during the same period.
While most of the crypto market remained flat, privacy-focused tokens stole the spotlight. Monero XMR$605.16 jumped 15% to break above $600, Zcash ZEC$405.48 gained 7%, and Ethereum-adjacent RAIL$2.2525 soared more than 30%. The moves came despite Dubai, a key digital asset hub, banning privacy coins from exchanges, underscoring that investors continue bidding censorship-resistant tools despite regulatory pushback.
Crypto miners rallied as social media giant Meta’s newly-announced "Meta Compute" initiative, aimed at building large-scale AI infrastructure, boosted sentiment for data center and high-performance computing sector. Iren (IREN) surged nearly 10%, while Bitfarms (BITF), Riot Platforms (RIOT), Bitdeer (BTDR) and Cipher Mining (CIFR) followed with 6–8% gains.
On the macro front, gold and silver pushed to fresh record highs as investors continued to favor precious metals as safe-haven assets. The move came as U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell confirmed that federal prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation into him, marking the latest escalation in tensions between the central bank and the Trump administration.
BTC and ETH face key resistances
BTC remains capped by a dense resistance zone between $93,500 and $95,000, a level that has repeatedly rejected upside attempts in recent weeks, Bitfinex analysts noted in a Monday report.
"Bitcoin is advancing into a dense supply zone," the report said. "Until this supply is worked through, the market is likely to remain range-bound, with risk appetite rebuilding gradually rather than transitioning immediately into a renewed impulsive uptrend."
Bitfinex also highlighted a "clean" derivatives slate, noting that options open interest has nearly halved from $52.5 billion to $28.6 billion. That sharp reset removes legacy dealer hedging flows, potentially allowing for more accurate price discovery based on current sentiment, the report said.
Looking ahead, LMAX strategist Joel Kruger warned that macro volatility remains elevated. A dense schedule of U.S. inflation data, major bank earnings and more Fed commentary could keep markets jumpy, while geopolitical stress and particularly the DOJ's Powell probe risk spilling over into crypto markets through the U.S. dollar and real yields.
"Against this backdrop," Kruger said, "bitcoin’s $95,000 and ETH’s $3,500 levels remain the critical signposts for whether this consolidation phase is ready to give way to a new leg higher."