Trump Gives Iran 48 Hours. BTC Drops to $68,000 Following Ultimatum Over Strait of Hormuz

My phone rang on Saturday evening. Trump posted a message on Truth Social. This time, it’s not about tariffs or election probes, but a threat against Iran. Trump’s 2026 Hormuz ultimatum is very direct and decisive: Iran has 48 hours to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. If not, the U.S. will destroy Iran’s power plants. The cryptocurrency market immediately understood the seriousness of the situation. What does Trump’s 2026 Hormuz ultimatum include? Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday, March 21, at 00:44 Dutch time. The deadline is Tuesday, March 24, at the same time. The demand is very clear: Iran must fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz, without threatening ships. If not, the U.S. will begin attacking nuclear power plants. The Bushehr nuclear plant and the Damavand plant near Tehran are the biggest targets. Furthermore, Trump’s 2026 Hormuz ultimatum shows a significant shift. Because on Friday, Trump was considering “gradually” de-escalating the conflict. Within 24 hours, the tone had completely changed. According to Al Jazeera, the Strait of Hormuz has been nearly closed for weeks. About 20% of the world’s traded oil usually passes through this route. Iran responded quickly and strongly. Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf wrote on social media that energy infrastructure in the region would become a “legitimate target” if the U.S. attacks. Previously, Iran destroyed part of Qatar’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) complex at Ras Laffan, which would take five years to repair. Additionally, Iran has demanded a fee of $2 million USD for each passing ship. At the same time, Tehran declared that the strait is “open, but only closed to enemies.” Notably, the Netherlands is also included in the joint statement of 22 countries condemning this stance. Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies responded immediately to Trump’s ultimatum. Bitcoin dropped 2.8% to $68,250 within 15 minutes after Trump’s announcement. This completely erased last week’s rally, when BTC reached $75,912. This morning, the price is fluctuating around $68,600. This represents a weekly decline of over 3%. Oil prices have been rising for weeks due to lockdowns. As a result, inflationary pressures are increasing. Higher inflation means less room for interest rate cuts. And fewer rate cuts will be unfavorable for risk assets like cryptocurrencies. Liquidations were very strong. According to analysts at CoinDesk, approximately $299 to $320 million worth of trading positions were forced to close. Over 85% of these were long positions. Traders had become increasingly optimistic about a ceasefire agreement over the past week. Therefore, the market is particularly vulnerable to this kind of news. Ethereum, XRP, and Cardano all fell nearly 3%. Dogecoin even lost more than 3%. The total cryptocurrency market cap lost about $55 billion USD in just a few hours. However, notable large “whales” are buying as prices fall. About 8,400 BTC were accumulated by large wallets within 48 hours. As a result, exchange reserves hit their lowest in seven years. Trump’s 2026 ultimatum, the deadline in 2026, and what happens next At 00:44 on Tuesday, March 24, Trump’s 2026 Hormuz ultimatum officially expires. However, Iran shows no signs of backing down. On the contrary, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned that an attack on power plants would completely paralyze the Strait of Hormuz. This is entirely contrary to what Trump wants. According to Financial Times journalists, the conflict is entering a new phase. Both sides show no willingness to de-escalate. Analysts warn that oil prices could drop to $130–$150 a barrel if the U.S. attacks. The International Energy Agency (IEA) called this energy disruption the largest ever recorded. Further escalation would only worsen the situation. For the cryptocurrency market, developments will depend on diplomatic messages over the next 36 hours. If the deadline is extended or ignored, a recovery could occur. Then, if the U.S. takes any action, a new wave of liquidations might happen. After all, the correlation between cryptocurrencies and macro risk remains very strong in recent weeks. The U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) keeps interest rates steady, but rising energy prices make rate cuts in 2026 increasingly unlikely. Therefore, Bitcoin remains vulnerable as long as Trump’s 2026 Hormuz ultimatum is unresolved.