We are still in a transitional phase, where old financial logics coexist with a new way of understanding value.
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Bitcoin price falls after Israel's attack on Iran.
The price of bitcoin (BTC) fell sharply yesterday, June 12, below $104,000, in what was an immediate market reaction to a high-impact geopolitical news: Israel launched a massive airstrike against Iran.
Moreover, the Israeli government declared a national state of emergency and justified its actions as a 'preventive response' to the supposed imminence of an Iranian nuclear weapon.
The episode marks one of the moments of greatest military tension in the Middle East in recent years. As is usual in events of this nature, markets reacted with uncertainty. And bitcoin, which many still consider a 'risky' asset, was no exception.
But what does bitcoin have to do with the conflict between Israel and Iran? The short answer is: increasingly more. What started in 2008 as a cypherpunk experiment is now one of the 10 most valuable assets on the planet, as seen in the following image:
This meteoric rise was not a coincidence. Over the past five years, bitcoin has been adopted by institutional funds, publicly traded companies, governments, and individuals seeking to protect their wealth against inflation or state control. Firms like BlackRock, Fidelity, and Strategy have accumulated significant amounts of BTC, and countries like El Salvador have declared it legal tender.
With this growing adoption, an inevitable consequence also arrives: the behavior of bitcoin's price starts to resemble, at least in part, that of other traditional financial assets. That is, it responds—short-term—to the same market dynamics that affect stocks, bonds, or commodities: fear, risk aversion, and external shocks.
Last night, with what happened in the Middle East, the market reaction was immediate: bitcoin fell sharply below $104,000. Why? Because investors, upon detecting an increase in global uncertainty, tend to shed assets considered 'risky' in favor of more traditional refuges. And despite its narrative as 'digital gold', bitcoin has not fully consolidated that role for most actors in the financial market.
A dual dimension for bitcoin
Bitcoin exists in a dual dimension. On one hand, its decentralized nature, its limited supply of 21 million units, its resistance to censorship, and its absolute portability make it ideal as a store of value in times of crisis. It does not depend on central banks, cannot be printed at will, nor easily confiscated. In the long term, this makes it a natural competitor to gold.
But, on the other hand, its short history, volatility, and speculative behavior in bullish and bearish cycles mean that, even today, many see it as a risky asset, as CriptoNoticias has explained on several occasions. This means that when a war breaks out, when a bank collapses, or when an economy wavers, the instinct of many traders is to sell first and ask questions later.
This is exactly what we saw with the Israeli attack on Iran. Bitcoin fell not because its network is at risk, nor because it has any direct link to the conflict, but because a significant part of the market still perceives it as just another casino chip within an interconnected and nervous global economy.
However, not everything is pessimism. Throughout its history, bitcoin has shown a unique ability to adapt, learn, and mature. Each time traditional markets face prolonged crises, bitcoin demonstrates that it can be something different.
As more individuals, institutions, and governments understand how bitcoin works and integrate it into their reserves, the narrative of 'digital gold' strengthens. And at some point, the moment will come when the market stops viewing bitcoin as a risky asset and begins to treat it for what it really is: the store of value of the 21st century.
This decoupling process will not be automatic, nor total. But we are already seeing signs. In previous episodes of tension, bitcoin has had mixed behaviors: sometimes falling alongside stocks, but other times acting as a refuge or recovering quickly.
The world in 2025 is marked by polarization, geopolitical tensions, and a transforming global economy. The digitalization of money is inevitable, and bitcoin—as an open, transparent, and unmanipulable monetary system—has an increasingly relevant role.
The drop in its price in the face of military escalation does not contradict its long-term thesis. On the contrary: it shows that we are still in a transitional phase, where old financial logics coexist with a new way of understanding value, scarcity, and economic freedom.
The important thing is not so much the specific drop in the face of a crisis, but the general trend. And that trend, if one steps back a little from the daily noise, is clear: bitcoin is increasingly present in global discussions about money, sovereignty, and the future.
