Ethereum Sinks Nearly 7% Amid Escalating Iran-Israel Conflict
June 13, 2025 — Ethereum ($ETH) took a sharp hit in today’s trading session, plunging 6.97% to $2,547.09, as global markets reeled from rising tensions in the Middle East. The sell-off followed Israel’s launch of Operation Rising Lion—a large-scale military assault on over 100 Iranian targets, including nuclear and military facilities.
The operation resulted in the death of high-ranking Iranian officials, including Gen. Hossein Salami and Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, triggering a fiery response from Tehran. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has vowed "severe retaliation," explicitly holding both Israel and the United States accountable. In response, Iran launched over 100 drones toward Israeli territory, prompting both countries to close their airspace.
Amid the turmoil, Ethereum saw significant downside pressure, underperforming even other major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin ($BTC), which dropped 2%. Analysts attribute Ethereum’s steeper decline to a combination of risk aversion and broader volatility in tech and growth-focused assets.
> “Ethereum is particularly sensitive to macro uncertainty,” said Maya Klein, a senior crypto strategist at BlockPoint Research. “Unlike Bitcoin, which some view as a store of value, ETH’s performance is more closely tied to DeFi activity and speculative flows—both of which dry up in times of geopolitical stress.”
The market reaction reflects a broader risk-off sentiment. Investors are pulling out of riskier digital assets and rotating into traditional safe-haven assets like gold, which rose 1.23%, and the U.S. dollar.
Notably, despite the drop, Ethereum’s fundamentals remain intact. On-chain activity, staking participation, and developer metrics have continued to show resilience, although short-term price action remains vulnerable to global uncertainty.
> “Geopolitical shocks tend to cause knee-jerk reactions,” added Klein. “But historically, crypto has shown a strong ability to rebound once the dust settles.”
For now, traders are watching closely. Any further escalation between Iran and Israel—or U.S. military involvement—could trigger additional volatility across both crypto and equity markets.
