Full timeline of guest invitations to the first White House cryptocurrency summit

Although Trump's return to the White House ignited optimism in the cryptocurrency market, a global trade storm caused by tariff policies eventually dragged Bitcoin

As Donald Trump returned to the White House on January 20, 2025, the price of Bitcoin remained high, at $107,000. However, the new administration's agenda included a focus on cryptocurrency regulation.

Three actions by the administration in January sparked volatility in the crypto market:

1. Presidential Task Force: Trump signed an executive order to create a digital asset task force, aiming to streamline the U.S. regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies. This news initially supported Bitcoin, pushing it above $108,000.

2. Colombian Tariffs: A dispute with Colombia over immigration led Trump to threaten a 25% tariff on Colombian goods. In response, Bitcoin dropped below the $100,000 mark.

3. Technology Sell-Off: The sudden rise of Chinese AI giant DeepSeek triggered a sell-off in technology stocks, with risk aversion spreading to the crypto market.

Key Data: Bitcoin's daily price fluctuation from January 26 to 28 reached 12%, the largest fluctuation since May 2024.

On February 1, Trump announced a 10% tariff on Chinese goods and a 25% tariff on Canadian and Mexican goods. The market reacted violently, with Bitcoin plummeting 9.3% to $93,000 in a single day.

The suspension of tariffs on North American neighbors brought a short-term rebound, but the steel tariff upgrade and the “reciprocal tariff” plan announced on February 10, coupled with the epic $1.4 billion hacking incident of the Bybit exchange, pushed Bitcoin further down. Finally, under the impact of the copper tariff review news on February 25, Bitcoin fell below the $80,000 mark for the first time since November 2024.

Market Observation: BitMEX data showed that open interest in futures contracts fell by 37% in February, indicating that a large amount of leveraged funds withdrew from the market.

On March 4, the double-edged sword of policy: the White House released contradictory signals: the announcement of a strategic digital asset reserve plan including XRP boosted confidence, but doubled the tariff on China to 20%. This “carrot and stick” strategy caused Bitcoin to continue to fluctuate in the range of $84,000-90,000.

On March 18, the precursor to the turning point, Treasury Secretary Bensont expressed his position on the “differentiated tariff” policy for the first time, suggesting that tariff escalation could be avoided if trading partners lowered barriers. The market interpreted this as the first ray of light of policy softening, and Bitcoin rebounded 3.1% in a single day to break through $85,000.

On March 20, the Federal Reserve decided to keep interest rates unchanged, and the dot plot showed at least two interest rate cuts this year. The moment the resolution was announced, the price of Bitcoin soared by more than 4%, breaking through the resistance level of $84,000.

On March 24, the policy resonance effect was stimulated by the dual stimulation of the expectation of loosening tariff policy and easing liquidity. Bitcoin rebounded 8.7% in a single week and approached $89,000. On-chain data showed that the giant whale address (holding more than 1,000 BTC) increased its holdings of 213,000 bitcoins during this period, the largest single-week accumulation since the fourth quarter of 2024.

Although there were signs of recovery in late March, the effective date of “reciprocal tariffs” on April 2 is like a sword of Damocles hanging over our heads. Bitget Research Institute's simulation shows that if the tariffs are fully implemented, they will drag down the price of Bitcoin to the 78,000s.

Institutional Strategy: Liquifi monitored that the net inflow of stablecoins reached US$4.7 billion in the last two weeks of March, indicating that funds are “loaded” and waiting for a direction decision.

The crisis exposed a profound transformation in the cryptocurrency market. Compared to the previous crashes that were driven by purely technical factors, this time, government policies and macroeconomic trends played a decisive role.

As analysts at Amber Group said : “When a presidential tweet can wipe out $30 billion in market value in an instant, this market can no longer pretend to live outside the law.” This baptism may be a required course for cryptocurrencies to integrate into the mainstream financial system.