'Sell now, think later' stampede sends bitcoin, ether tumbling alongside Asian stocks, analyst says

Bitcoin and ether extended their losses on Monday morning in Asia as regional markets slumped, exacerbating a global sell-off sparked by U.S. President Donald Trump's escalating trade war.

"Amid growing caution over the pace and scope of the April 2 tariff implementations, a 'Sell Now, Think Later' mindset has gripped risk assets, including bitcoin," said Peter Chung, head of research at Presto Research.

Bitcoin fell 5.3% over the past 24 hours to trade at $78,999 at the time of writing, while ether lost 11.8% to change hands at $1,596, according to The Block's price page. The GMCI 30 index, which measures the performance of the top 30 cryptocurrencies, dropped 8.6%.

The crypto sell-off coincides with major market slumps in Asia. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 8% immediately upon opening, with stock futures trading suspended due to a circuit breaker. South Korea's Kospi fell 4.6% so far today. The Shanghai Composite dropped 5.8% shortly after opening, while the Shenzhen Component lost 7.2%.

Taiwan's stock market also sank following an extended holiday break since last Thursday, with nearly 1,000 stocks hitting their daily decline limits. TSMC, Taiwan's largest company and the world's largest semiconductor manufacturer, plunged directly to its daily limit-down price at market open.

Jeff Mei, COO of crypto exchange BTSE, explained that historically, crypto markets tend to front-run stock markets over the weekend, and that "this morning's Asia market declines seem to have reinforced this belief."

With major cryptocurrencies still falling, total crypto liquidations in the past 24 hours have reached around $890.9 million. Long liquidations accounted for about $758.2 million, compared to $132.7 million on the short side, according to Coinglass data. The liquidation data are based on publicly available data, which may understate the true extent of market liquidations. 

Chung of Presto noted that the timing and level at which the market finds its footing would depend on three main things: how the rest of the world responds, whether the Trump administration can lay out a cohesive long-term plan for the future, and what people expect the Federal Reserve would do to address the current instability.

"The Growth Scare 2.0 is in full swing, with markets now pricing in over 100 bp rate cuts this year," Chung said. 

With Trump’s unwavering tariff policies, TradFi companies are currently navigating "rough waters" in an attempt to balance expectations of a prolonged trade war and bitcoin's volatility, LVRG Research Director Nick Ruck said.

"This could lead to an overselling of digital assets, which take significant influence from ever-changing sentiment and their own ecosystem economics," Ruck told The Block.