Bitcoin hits lowest price in 3 months after Bybit hack

Bitcoin has tumbled below $90,000 (around €85k), marking its lowest point since November 2024, according to numerous reports, including The Standard and Reuters.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency saw a sharp decline of up to 7.5 per cent on Tuesday, February 25 before stabilising at $89,314. The crash follows growing market uncertainty fuelled by U.S. tariff concerns and last week’s massive Bybit exchange hack.
Trump’s tariffs add to crypto uncertainty
Market sentiment took a hit after U.S. President Donald Trump reaffirmed his plans to impose a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian and Mexican imports, set to take effect in early March. This has reignited fears of inflation and potential trade wars, pushing investors towards safer assets like U.S. Treasury bonds, which have seen a sharp rally.
Marcel Heinrichsmeier, a crypto assets analyst at DZ Bank, highlighted the macroeconomic strain, stating: “The continued tariff announcements and the general protectionist stance of the Trump administration once again led to uncertainty and a risk-off move, fuelling fears of a resurgence of trade wars and inflation.” He added, “The Bybit hack and the memecoin turmoil of the past few weeks have contributed to a generally worse mood in the crypto market than at the beginning of the year.” (Cited by Reuters.)
What happened with the Bybit hack?
The recent collapse in Bitcoin’s price has also been linked to last week’s $1.5 billion (€1.38 billion) hack of Dubai-based Bybit, the world’s second-largest crypto exchange (behind Binance). Hackers entered an Ethereum wallet and stole the entire contents. According to blockchain research firm Elliptic, the hack is “almost certainly the single largest known theft of any kind in all time.”
Crypto markets initially held firm in response to the hack, but experts believe a delayed reaction is now taking place. “Markets held up peculiarly well in response to what was expected to be a significant destabilising event,” said Joseph Edwards, head of research at Enigma Securities. “But there tends to be a price to be paid further down the line when that happens.” (Cited by Reuters.)
Ethereum and Altcoins also plunge
Bitcoin’s decline has rippled across the crypto market, much like it tends to do. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, fell by 9.5 per cent to $2,386 (€2,200), marking its lowest price since October. Other major altcoins, including Dogecoin, Solana, and Cardano, have suffered losses of around 20 per cent in the past week, according to CoinGecko data.
Crypto expert warns against ‘buying the dip’
Despite the ‘discounted prices’, some crypto analysts are urging caution before investing in the sharp dips. Standard Chartered Bank’s head of crypto research, Geoff Kendrick, warned against premature optimism, stating: “While bitcoin trades relatively well within the digital asset complex it is now caught up in the Solana meme coin driven selloff and now the broader risk off nature of markets.” He added: “Before buying the dip is attractive I think we get a $1 billion ETF outflow day.” (Cited by Forbes.)
With continued market volatility, the crypto sector faces uncertain weeks ahead, especially in relation to security concerns in the wake of the Bybit hack.
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