Bitcoin and ether declined sharply on July 17 as a selloff in semiconductor stocks across Asia and North America combined with renewed U.S.-Iran Middle East tensions to drive a broad risk-off move through crypto markets.
Bitcoin fell 1.2% to $62,758.46, while ether dropped 1.74%. The total crypto market capitalization declined 1.86% to $2.16 trillion, according to reporting by Oliver Knight and Omkar Godbole at CoinDesk.
The selloff tracked broader equity weakness. Nasdaq 100 index futures fell 1.91%, the S&P 500 futures declined 0.96%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 4%. The Dollar Index rose to 100.75, while gold advanced 0.61% to $4,000.
“The market is ending the week with two bruises: AI fatigue and Hormuz heat,” Patrick Munnelly of Tickmill Group said. “The semiconductor selloff has gone from profit-taking to position-clearing, dragging Asia toward its worst levels in months.”
The decline extended a broader weakness in AI tokens that began in mid-June. FET and TAO posted 0.20% gains despite the sector’s struggles. Privacy coins bucked the broader trend: zcash rose 1.56% to $531, and dash gained 0.78%.
Technical indicators showed stress across crypto derivatives. The average RSI reading across crypto pairs stood at 42.23, approaching oversold conditions. The long-short ratio in crypto futures markets fell to 0.94, the lowest level since June 2, indicating bears held control of positioning.
Crypto futures trading volume reached $163 billion in 24 hours, with open interest at $111 billion. Bitcoin open interest stood at 747K BTC, near the previous high of 755K BTC. Overall volume cooled 4% in 24 hours, though bitcoin and ether futures showed orderly price declines without panic unwinding.
The Lighter token fell 3.55% to $2.195 after surging over 200% between May and early July. HYPE open interest rose 2% while its spot price declined 8%. Real-world asset perpetual volumes hit a record $311 billion.
The CoinMarketCap Altcoin Season indicator stood at 53/100, highlighting bitcoin weakness relative to altcoins. Implied volatility indexes for both bitcoin and ether remained near recent lows despite the day’s declines.
An unnamed trader or group holds a large-scale ether straddle bet expiring July 24, with a $28 million position size.
