Trump’s Tariff Talk Sends Bitcoin Sliding After Blasting Past $111K on Strong Fundamentals

Bitcoin’s historic rally to over $111,000 this week had analysts praising what many saw as a more mature and sustainable surge—one driven by institutional flows and tighter market dynamics rather than retail speculation. But that bullish narrative was abruptly interrupted Friday morning when former President Donald Trump threatened a sweeping 50% tariff on the European Union via a post on Truth Social, rattling financial markets and triggering a pullback in crypto prices.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin has dipped 1.8% in the last hour, settling around $108,531. Ethereum (ETH) and other major altcoins were hit harder, with ETH down 4% to just above $2,500 and XRP shedding 3.7% to trade near $2.34.

Earlier in the week, Bitcoin had briefly stumbled after a lackluster U.S. Treasury auction but managed to rebound to $111,807 during early Friday trading in Asia. This latest rally showed signs of structural strength, citing diminished leverage, price resilience, and a notable decoupling from gold, which has stagnated near $3,300.

The optimism surrounding Bitcoin’s climb had sparked discussion that this bull run might be fundamentally different from previous cycles. Yet Trump’s tariff threat has injected fresh uncertainty, leading many traders to question whether Bitcoin can gather enough strength to push beyond the next psychological threshold at $115,000.