A sharp wave of selling swept across global markets on April 7th, hammering both cryptocurrencies and traditional stocks as investor anxiety surged over escalating trade tensions and mounting fears of an economic slowdown. The catalyst appeared to be renewed concerns surrounding US President Donald Trump’s global tariff war, prompting a significant flight from riskier assets.
The downturn wasn’t isolated to the digital asset space; financial markets worldwide, including major indices in the US and India, experienced steep declines as worries intensified about the potential fallout from the latest round of international tariffs.
Bitcoin Leads Crypto Plunge Amid Fading Confidence
Bitcoin (BTC), the benchmark cryptocurrency, bore the brunt of the sell-off, dropping 7.67% on Monday to trade at $76,947.87. This significant dip below the $80,000 psychological level highlighted dwindling investor confidence, as capital flowed out of perceived high-risk assets towards safer havens amidst the growing global uncertainty.
Other major cryptocurrencies suffered even heavier losses. Ethereum (ETH) plunged 14.54%, sliding to $1,545.19. Altcoins like XRP and Solana (SOL) were also caught in the downdraft, tumbling 17.02% (to $1.76) and 15.02% (to $101.79), respectively. Even the popular meme coin Dogecoin (DOGE) couldn’t escape the rout, falling 15.56% to trade at $0.1412.
Over $160 Billion Erased as Global Shocks Hit Crypto
The scale of the crypto market reaction was stark. Avinash Shekhar, Co-Founder & CEO of Pi42, highlighted the increasing correlation between traditional finance and digital assets during such stress events.
“As futures on Wall Street dipped and ‘Black Monday’ repeat fears emerged, the coupling between traditional markets and crypto holdings becomes more visible,” Shekhar stated. “The sudden plunge of Bitcoin below the $80,000 threshold and overall crypto market selloff that erased more than $160 billion in value [marks] a pivotal point fueled by macroeconomic uncertainty and investor wariness.”
According to CoinMarketCap data, the total global cryptocurrency market capitalization slumped to approximately $2.5 trillion, reflecting a 6.59% drop within just 24 hours.
Stock Markets Mirror Crypto Crash Across Continents
The turmoil in the crypto sphere directly mirrored the heavy losses seen in global stock markets. In the United States, major indices closed deep in the red. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plummeted 5.82% (962.82 points) to finish at 15,587.79. The Nasdaq US 500 Large Cap Index fell 6.06% (170.18 points), and the Nasdaq-100 dropped 6.07% (1,123.78 points).
In India, markets opened sharply lower on Monday morning. By 11:45 am local time, the Sensex had crashed 3.53% (2,661.62 points) to 72,703.07, while the Nifty tumbled 3.87% (887.25 points) to 22,017.20, underscoring the widespread nature of the market sell-off driven by global economic concerns.
