Why Is the Crypto Market Down Today?

The cryptocurrency market is under pressure today, driven by renewed geopolitical concerns, massive long liquidations, and weakening technical signals — leaving investors anxious about the near-term outlook. Let’s break down the key reasons behind the drop.

Crypto Market Dips 2.6% Amid Renewed Trade Fears

The total crypto market capitalization fell 2.6% to $3.34 trillion on May 30, marking a sharp decline that’s putting the market’s momentum at risk. This drop came shortly after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed that U.S.-China trade talks have hit a deadlock.

“I would say that they are a bit stalled,” Bessent said in a May 29 Fox News interview, adding that a breakthrough would likely require direct intervention by President Trump and China’s leadership.

24-hour performance of large-cap cryptocurrencies. Source: Coin360

The stalled negotiations have spooked global markets, triggering a risk-off sentiment that’s pushing investors out of speculative assets like Bitcoin and altcoins.

Bitcoin Leads the Downtrend

Bitcoin (BTC) dropped nearly 2% to a local low of $104,600 on Bitstamp. The decline spread across the market:

• Ethereum (ETH): Down 4% to $2,560

• Solana (SOL): Down 5.2% to $162

• XRP: Down 4.2% to $2.17

• Dogecoin (DOGE): Down 9% to $0.2026

The market-wide drop reflects investor concerns that prolonged geopolitical tensions could erode confidence in crypto, especially at a time when prices are already under pressure from technical and structural factors.

Performance of top cryptocurrencies. Source: CoinMarketCap

$680 Million in Crypto Liquidations Accelerate Sell-Off

Adding fuel to the fire, the futures market saw a wave of liquidations totaling $683.4 million over the past 24 hours.

• Long positions wiped out: $617.85 million

• Short positions liquidated: $65.55 million

Major liquidations by asset:

• Bitcoin (BTC): $211.21 million

• Ethereum (ETH): $112.53 million

• Solana (SOL): $31.69 million

• XRP: $29.42 million

• Dogecoin (DOGE): $21.39 million

This cascade of liquidations not only pushed prices lower but also spooked remaining traders, intensifying the sell-off across exchanges.

Crypto market’s liquidation heatmap (24 hours). Source: CoinGlass

Technical Breakdown Raises Red Flags

From a technical analysis standpoint, the crypto market has slipped below key support levels.

The combined crypto market cap — tracked by the TOTAL index — has broken below $3.35 trillion, now hovering near $3.22 trillion.

• The Relative Strength Index (RSI) has fallen from overbought conditions (79 on May 10) to a neutral 52, signaling growing downside pressure.

• If TOTAL fails to hold above $3.22 trillion, the next key level is the 200-day simple moving average (SMA) at $3.1 trillion — a drop that could trigger further losses across major coins.

TOTAL crypto market cap daily performance chart. Source: TradingView

Outlook

In summary, the crypto market is facing a perfect storm of negative catalysts: geopolitical uncertainty, technical weakness, and massive liquidations. While long-term fundamentals remain intact, short-term traders should be cautious as the market approaches key support zones that could determine the next major move.