Bitcoin price moved lower on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump issued a new warning tied to Iran and the Strait of Hormuz. In a social media post, Trump said he had ordered the United States Navy to “shoot and kill” any Iranian boats placing mines in the waterway. The statement came as the U.S.-Iran standoff deepened, oil prices moved higher again, and traders reduced some recent risk exposure across crypto and equities. BTC/USD fell to about $78,326 in morning trading after reaching $79,449 earlier in the week. The decline followed a strong rally that had lifted bitcoin to its highest level since January. Even with the pullback, the asset remained well above its level from the start of the week, showing that buyers had not fully left the market after the latest geopolitical shock. Donald Trump’s Strait of Hormuz Warning Hits Market Mood Trump’s latest comments added another layer of uncertainty to an already fragile ceasefire environment. He said there was no deadline for ending the war with Iran, no deadline for the ceasefire, and no deadline for Tehran’s response to his request for a peace proposal. He also said Iran did not know who its leader was, adding to the sense that negotiations remained unstable. The military situation also became more tense overnight. The U.S. Defense Department said it had boarded another sanctioned stateless vessel in the Indian Ocean that was carrying Iranian oil. Earlier, reports said Iran attacked three cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz and captured two of them, calling the move retaliation for the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports. At the same time, Iran’s lead negotiator said Tehran had received its first revenue from tolls imposed on ships moving through the strait. That sequence kept the Strait of Hormuz at the center of market attention. The waterway remains one of the most important global oil routes, and traders continued to watch its status closely as oil prices rose again. Bitcoin, which had recently benefited from stronger risk appetite, slipped as some investors turned more cautious. Bitcoin Holds Weekly Gains Despite a Pullback From $79,000 Bitcoin’s move lower came after a strong start to the week. Through the first half of the week, the asset gained about 7.5% before giving back part of that advance. The retreat from the $79,000 area did not erase the broader rebound, and market sentiment remained better than it was during February and March. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index, according to data, recently improved from Extreme Fear into Fear. That shift points to a less defensive market backdrop than earlier in the year, even though traders are still reacting quickly to conflict-related headlines. Bitcoin has also shown more stability during recent sessions, with price holding above earlier support zones after sharp moves higher. Institutional demand has remained part of that support. Strategy added another large bitcoin purchase this week, spending about $2.5 billion to increase reserves. That flow has helped sustain interest in the asset even as geopolitical headlines continue to pressure broader risk markets. Futures Demand Leads the BTC Rally as Spot Signals Stay Mixed Some analysts have said the recent Bitcoin rise has been driven more by derivatives activity than by direct spot buying. Cryptoquant CEO Julio Moreno has said the latest rally was “completely driven by demand in the perpetual futures market,” while spot demand was still contracting, though at a slower pace. He added that a similar pattern appeared in January when bitcoin peaked near $98,000. Source: X That setup leaves traders watching whether the current pullback remains contained or turns into a broader correction. According to crypto analyst Michaël van de Poppe, the BTC price move back from $79,000 looked like normal price action. As per his chart, he still sees room for a push toward $85,000 to $88,000 over the next one to two weeks, as long as the $73,000 to $75,000 area holds.
