Bitcoin back under pressure as Nvidia 'honeytrap' and Iran spook markets

Bitcoin came under renewed heavy selling pressure on Monday after two geopolitical shocks dented investor confidence. The largest cryptocurrency had already fallen to around $73.761 on Sunday evening, its lowest level since August, before a tentative recovery towards $75.000 followed as US futures turned green. At the time of writing on Tuesday morning, Bitcoin is trading at $74.500.

Huang

The first blow came from Silicon Valley. Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang is under fire after it emerged that he had an affair with a woman who, according to US authorities, may have passed information to China, a so-called honeytrap.

Nvidia has since launched an independent investigation. The company stresses that there are as yet no indications that trade secrets or information relating to US national security were compromised.

Investors are chiefly concerned that the affair could damage Huang’s position and with it confidence in Nvidia. Nvidia has grown into the very symbol of the AI boom, and uncertainty surrounding its chief executive can therefore easily spill over into other technology stocks.

Iran

At the same time, nerves over Iran are mounting again. According to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, negotiations with Tehran have stalled. That fuelled fears of a further escalation of the conflict and fresh disruption to energy and financial markets.

For Bitcoin investors, the key question now is whether $73.000 to $74.000 holds, or whether the combination of geopolitical uncertainty, falling tech stocks and mass liquidations triggers a new wave of selling.