Bitcoin Slides Below $100K Before Rebounding to $106K Amid Iran Headlines

June 22 delivered a heart-stopping plunge for Bitcoin, with its price violently crashing through the $100,000 psychological barrier before staging an equally rapid recovery to $106,000. 

While the catalyst appeared to be geopolitical headlines from the Middle East, the sheer speed and violence of the drop suggest internal market mechanics played a decisive role. This report breaks down the three-act drama behind the move.

The Crash – How Geopolitical Fears Sparked a Liquidation Cascade

The sell-off began on June 22, when headlines announced that Iran was preparing a potential retaliatory strike on U.S. targets. With geopolitical uncertainty already high, traders treated the news as a signal of a direct Iran-U.S. clash, and capital immediately shifted into traditional safe-haven assets.

Bitcoin, with its pronounced sensitivity to geopolitical risk, felt the impact first. As the price slipped below the critical $100,000 psychological level, internal market mechanisms amplified the fall. Derivatives exchanges triggered a wave of forced liquidations of long positions, a common feature in highly leveraged crypto markets. At the peak of the move, these cascading liquidations totaled over $150 million in a single hour, accelerating the downturn and pushing BTC down 4% in just three hours.

On X, crypto traders speculated that large holders, or “whales,” may have used the news-driven panic to offload positions, intentionally driving prices lower to trigger the cascade and buy back BTC at the bottom.

Read more: How Military Conflict Could Impact Bitcoin Mining in Iran

The Rebound on “Sell the Rumor, Buy the News”

Hours later, after Iran carried out a limited strike on U.S. military locations in the Middle East, crypto markets recovered rapidly.

Media reports confirmed the strike resulted in minimal harm – no verified casualties and negligible material damage. That news fundamentally altered the risk narrative, as market participants recognized that fears of a major escalation would not materialize immediately.

Panic gave way to cautious buying. On this news, Bitcoin bounced back above $102,000. Some experts saw the rebound as a classic case of short covering: traders who had shorted the market in a panic quickly brought back their positions to lock in profits, amplifying demand.

Lessons from a Flash Crash

BTC’s wild ride to $106,000 hasn’t erased doubts. The rumored Iran-Israel truce lacks official confirmation, meaning the risk of renewed conflict remains elevated. Traders maintain a cautious stance, viewing Bitcoin’s moves as characteristic of a liquidity-driven bounce, not a fundamental return to a decisive uptrend.

The episode serves as a stark reminder of how leveraged the crypto market is and how susceptible it is to violent, headline-driven swings. However, the powerful recovery also demonstrated the deep and resilient demand for Bitcoin at key psychological levels like $100,000. The ultimate direction from here hinges entirely on the next major headline.