Risk assets were hit by another wave of selling in early trading, with gold, silver, and cryptocurrencies all moving lower. Spot gold fell from near $5,530 per ounce, broke below $5,150, and then made a second move down after 8 a.m., touching a low of $5,110. Silver followed the same path, dropping to $108 per ounce and losing more than 6% over the past three hours.
Crypto saw deeper losses. Bitcoin briefly rebounded to $84,000 before turning sharply lower again, printing a wick down to $81,000. At the time of writing, it had recovered slightly to around $82,000. The speed of the move fed directly into derivatives markets, where liquidations accelerated.
More than 270,000 traders liquidated in 24 hours
According to Coinglass, 270,022 traders were liquidated across the market in the past 24 hours, with total liquidations reaching $1.68 billion. As prices fell quickly, leveraged positions were forced out in clusters, amplifying intraday volatility and contributing to Bitcoin’s sharp wick lower.
The decline was not limited to crypto. Precious metals, equities, and digital assets all weakened in the same window, pointing to a broad drop in risk appetite rather than an isolated move in one market. The sell-off spread across multiple asset classes within hours.
Iran statements and military drill plans added to market pressure
The move came after Iran signaled a stronger wartime posture, pushing Middle East tensions back into focus. Iranian Vice President Aref said publicly that Iran has remained in a state of military readiness since the current government took office. He said Iran would not start a war, but if attacked, it would defend itself decisively and make sure the course of the conflict would not be controlled by its enemies.
Aref also said Iran supports dialogue and rationality, but if conflict breaks out, the outcome would no longer be in the hands of the opposing side. On negotiations, he said Iran is open to talks only if there are “real and reliable guarantees.” On the same day, Iran announced military drills in the Strait of Hormuz on February 1 and 2, including live-fire exercises. Officials did not disclose the scale or detailed schedule, but the announcement added to concerns over regional conflict risk and potential disruption to shipping and energy transport.