Bitcoin has witnessed its largest fall since January 22, going down 17.5% in February in its worst monthly drop since June 2022 and the 11th worst month in the last decade, as hopes in Trump's promises of making the US the crypto capital of the world fade.

The cryptocurrency ended February at around $84,552, after hitting a three-month low of about $78,273 on Friday, continuing a downward trend since it reached its all-time high of $103,332 in December 2024.

Bitcoin's losses mirror the volatility of the financial markets as US President Donald Trump raises fears of a global trade war as he continues to impose and threaten tariffs on US imports, most recently threatening an unspecified 25% tariff that will be announced very soon.

Cryptocurrencies saw a rise in price after Trump's win, as investors speculated that the White House will take a pro-crypto approach following Trump's promises, including creating a strategic US Bitcoin reserve, similar to its gold reserves.

Bitcoin plummets in price

After surging to $103,800 in December following Trump’s election victory in November, with the crypto token climbing over 50% and its value increasing by 140% since the start of 2024, BTC has been witnessing a sharp drop in price.

Bitcoin fell below $90,000 on February 25, reaching 89,700 USD at 8:50 am, as other cryptocurrencies faced similar losses. Then, BTC dropped beneath $80,000 on February 28, trading at $78,949, losing over 20% of its value over one week.

This drop wasn't limited to Bitcoin, as Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, saw a slide of 11% over 24 hours on February 28, while XRP fell 9.2%, and Solana's SOL lost 9% of its value.

FBI accuses DPRK of 'crypto exchange heist'

This drop in the cryptocurrency market is partially attributed to a "digital heist" targeting the Bybit crypto exchange, when hackers took control of an Ethereum wallet and transferred its funds to an unidentified address.

The exchange quickly witnessed a spike in withdrawal requests following the news of the heist, with over 350,000 withdrawal requests being received by the company from users who are looking to safeguard their investments.

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) accused the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) of orchestrating the largest crypto heist in history, in which $1.5 billion worth of digital assets was stolen last week.

They identified TraderTraitor, also known as the Lazarus group, as the culprits behind the heist and said that the hackers are quickly moving to convert part of the stolen funds into Bitcoin and then launder them before turning them into fiat currency.