Bitcoin fell below $80,000 on Monday as stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data revived bets that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this month, while higher oil prices amid escalating tensions between the United States and Iran added further pressure on risky assets.
Bitcoin was trading at $79,724.80 by 8:01 AM, down about 0.3% for the day.
Bitcoin briefly surpassed the $82,000 level last week, hitting its highest point in more than three months at around $82,178.60 on Thursday, before retreating following the release of the US employment report on Friday.
Expectations of interest rate hikes and rising oil prices are weighing on risk appetite.
Data released on Friday showed that U.S. employers added 162,000 jobs in August, nearly three times economists' expectations, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%.
The report prompted markets to price in a probability of around 60% for the Fed to raise interest rates at its September 15-16 meeting, compared with 49% before the data was released, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
Higher interest rates tend to put pressure on Bitcoin and other speculative assets by increasing the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding investments and tightening financial conditions.
Oil prices added another source of uncertainty, with Brent crude rising to around $97 a barrel on Monday, as escalating military tensions between the United States and Iran raised concerns about supply disruptions in the Middle East.
The US military announced that it struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday, following Iranian forces targeting US Navy ships with ballistic missiles.
Investors are now turning to US inflation data for further clues about the Federal Reserve's policy path, with producer prices due on Thursday and consumer prices on Friday. A higher-than-expected inflation reading could reinforce expectations of a tightening of monetary policy.
Despite the recent decline, institutional demand provided some support, with U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recording net inflows of nearly $1 billion last week, according to SoSoValue data.
Bitcoin network suffers $320 million hack
The Bitcoin-linked Liquid Network, a settlement platform used by cryptocurrency exchanges, has halted new transactions after the equivalent of about $320 million in Bitcoin was withdrawn from its collective wallet in a security breach, raising fresh concerns about the infrastructure of digital assets.
Liquid Network said in a post on its X platform that approximately 4,000 of the 4,200 bitcoins held in the wallet have been withdrawn. The withdrawals were made via SideSwap, a licensed settlement platform that facilitates transactions on the network.
The network reported that the individuals responsible described themselves as alleged white hat hackers, although their identities and intentions remain unclear.
Exchanges have also suspended deposits and withdrawals related to the Bitcoin-linked LBTC token issued by Liquid, pending an investigation into the incident.
Cryptocurrency prices today: Altcoins decline
Most alternative currencies declined in limited trading on Monday amid a cautious mood.
Ethereum, the world's second-largest cryptocurrency, lost 0.4% to reach $2,502.11.
XRP, the world's third-largest cryptocurrency, fell 1.1% to $1.41.
Solana fell by 1.1%, Cardano by 0.9%, and BNB by 2%.
Regarding meme coins, Dogecoin fell by 1.8%.
