Russia-Ukraine crisis: Bitcoin tumbles as Putin orders military into eastern Ukraine

As Moscow decided to conduct military operations in eastern Ukraine, Bitcoin slipped to a one-month low.

Cryptocurrencies dropped as Vladimir Putin decided to conduct military operations in eastern Ukraine, with Bitcoin slumping to a one-month low.The largest token fell as much as 7.4% to $34,783 after an initial Tass report on Russia’s decision. Second-ranked Ether declined as much as 8.7% to $2,390.61. Other coins like XRP, Cardano and Solana were down as well.Bitcoin’s swings during the past weeks of escalating geopolitical tensions have served to undermine the argument that cryptocurrencies offer a hedge in times of trouble. The traditional safe haven gold, meanwhile, surged to the highest level since early 2021 on Thursday. “Risk assets continue to be weighed down the Russia-Ukraine conflict and tensions. This includes Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies which are currently still very much viewed as a high-risk asset class,” said Vijay Ayyar, vice president of corporate development at Luno, a crypto platform. The next key level to watch for Bitcoin will be $28,000 to $29,000, he said. If that treshold gets breached, “we could be looking at much lower levels in the low $20,000s and below.”