Geopolitical bellwether Bitcoin reacts immediately to Venezuela news

The first investment asset to react to the US military action in Venezuela this weekend was, of course, Bitcoin, which dipped when news of the explosions in Caracas broke and then recovered strongly afterwards. That other geopolitical battleground, Iran, also made headlines this weekend in connection with crypto.

Venezuela

The United States launched a military attack on Venezuela this weekend, capturing and subsequently evacuating President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.

Prices of major digital currencies briefly fell after initial reports of the military action but have since recovered. At the time of writing, Bitcoin is already trading at $91,000.

International investors are increasingly looking to Bitcoin over the weekend to see how markets will react on Monday. The largest digital currency is thus becoming a geopolitical bellwether as well.

Iran

Iran is also experiencing considerable turmoil in the first days of the new year. The country’s Islamic regime, reeling from widespread protests, is attempting to sell military hardware to friendly regimes to raise cash, as the Financial Times initially reported. However, payments can only be made in crypto as the local currency, the Iranian rial, continues to fall against the dollar and other global fiat currencies.