Altcoins retreated after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to send letters to trading partners detailing new tariffs

The major cryptocurrencies in the market are facing declines this Friday (4) after Donald Trump reignited trade tensions by threatening to impose tariffs again, while the controversial 'Big, Beautiful Bill' overcame its last hurdle in Congress on Thursday — much to the dismay of Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

XRP fell 2.8% in the last 24 hours, with Solana retreating 2.9% and Cardano 4%. The popular Dogecoin also plummeted 5%, while Hyperliquid fell 5.1%. Bitcoin shows the smallest decline of 1.8%, trading at $107,958.

'President Donald Trump signaled that new tariff notices could be issued as early as Friday, aiming to increase pressure before the trade negotiations on July 9,' said an analyst from the derivatives brokerage Bitunix in a note shared with Decrypt.

'This measure signals a possible new escalation in U.S. global trade policy. Markets are worried about further deterioration of global trade and its impact on economic prospects.'

Trump told reporters that '10 or 12' letters should be sent on Friday, notifying countries about tariffs ranging from 10% to 20% or 60% to 70%. More letters are expected to be issued 'in the coming days,' the president said.

The measure comes just before the end of the 90-day suspension of U.S. tariffs, which expires on Wednesday, July 9. These tariffs were initially announced during Liberation Day in April, when Ethereum fell 6.5% and Dogecoin 9.8% the following day.

Since then, the tensions of the trade war have eased thanks to agreements made with China and the United Kingdom, which boosted the markets.

However, anxiety around tariffs resurfaced with the approach of the end of the suspension. As a result, altcoins like Jupiter fell 6.3% on the day, Worldcoin 6.2%, and Algorand 5.8%, while the bold memecoin Pepe retreated 6.3%.

Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill'

Meanwhile, Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' was finally approved by Congress on Thursday.

Tesla CEO and former Trump ally Elon Musk called the bill a 'repugnant aberration' in June. He subsequently launched a public offensive on social media, claiming that Trump was mentioned in files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Trump later stated that Musk turned against him only after discovering that the 'Big, Beautiful Bill' would eliminate a mandate related to electric vehicles — the core of Tesla's business.

Arthur Hayes, co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX, predicted that the project could lead Bitcoin to test $90,000 later this year, despite previously projecting that the leading crypto would reach $250,000. Hayes argued that the Treasury would replenish its General Account, which could represent a liquidity drain of assets like Bitcoin.

However, Bitcoin has remained stable since the project's approval, with altcoins being the most affected.