Trump tariffs shake crypto markets, where are Bitcoin and meme coins headed?

• Bitcoin slips close to $74,500 low, hitting a new cycle bottom amidst global market crash on Monday. 
• Ethereum and XRP slump in double digits in the last 24 hours, with nearly all crypto tokens in the top 30 suffering a correction. 
• Trump tariffs trigger a meltdown in the market, ten experts weigh in on the US President’s plans for crypto. 

Bitcoin (BTC) and altcoin prices were on a rollercoaster ride on Monday as traders digested the developments surrounding tariffs. From speculation of a 90-day pause on tariffs to Bitcoin’s price swinging from a $74,500 low to $81,200 high within a single day, the crypto market meltdown has been an event for traders. 

Ethereum (ETH) and XRP wiped out their value in the last 24 hours by nearly double digits. 

Trump tariffs destroy crypto gains

Bitcoin consolidated around the $85,000 level for weeks before Trump’s Liberation Day shakeout. As tariffs take effect, global markets plummeted on Monday, and cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP slumped. 

While Trump’s tariff announcements wiped out 7% in crypto market capitalization in the last 24 hours, Bitcoin hovers around support at $78,000. After a brief slump under $1,500, Ethereum is back above the key support level and XRP trades at $1.8710. 

Derivatives traders are de-risking with a near 10% decline in open interest, down to $91.19 billion on Monday. The market logged $1.61 billion in crypto liquidations in the last 24 hours and Bitcoin’s dominance climbed slightly to 62.62%, according to Coinglass data. 

Where is crypto headed under the Trump administration?

Greg di Prisco, co-founder of M^0 Labs, a firm that specializes in building architecture for decentralized stablecoins, says he doesn’t have very high expectations for Trump’s Strategic Bitcoin Reserve plan. 

Prisco commented on the Trump administration’s impact on crypto and told FXStreet:

“The 180-degree flip from the Biden years is more than the industry could have asked for. The President got this right and he did it in a big way. Perhaps even more importantly than Trump’s direct actions, his impact on the progress in legislation has been the most important development for the industry. The stablecoin bills going through the various houses of governments will put the US in a firm competitive decision.”

Prisco shared his top three crypto predictions for 2025:

“I think you will see the GENIUS act become the bill that the government ultimately coalesces around and will eventually pass, but that may happen in H2. More traditional financial institutions will start to launch tokenized products inspired by the success of Blackrock’s BUIDL. Stablecoins will continue to prove themselves as crypto’s killer use case. They will start to be integrated into mainstream fintech applications.”

Sid Powell, CEO and co-founder of Maple Finance, believes that Trump’s commitment not to liquidate the US government’s Bitcoin holdings and hold them in a Strategic Reserve removes nearly $17 billion of potential selling pressure from the market. 

While Powell does not expect Bitcoin purchases from the US government, he says, “The administration seems focused on exploring creative methods to expand on the holdings without incurring any direct expense, such as leveraging profits from gold reserves or some other creative accounting. If Congress does in fact pass the proposed ‘Bitcoin Act of 2025,’ committing to the acquisition of 1 million BTC over five years by selling Federal Reserve gold certificates, it could signal a shift to more aggressive accumulation strategies.”

The Maple Finance CEO predicts a Bitcoin Arms Race, a pivotal moment for the US economy where the Trump administration competes with nations seeking to establish their own strategic crypto reserves and leads significant acquisitions of BTC. 

Anthony Anzalone, CEO and founder of Layer 1 blockchain XION, takes into account the recent developments in the crypto market and Trump’s pro-crypto policy and says,

“While the markets may not necessarily be indicative of this, the impact has been huge. Beyond the headline-grabbing announcements, we've seen a significant shift in regulatory tone from enforcement-focused to innovation-friendly, with key appointments of crypto-knowledgeable individuals across agencies, which will create the most impact in the long term. There has been a leveled commitment to preserving core crypto principles, and actions such as the Treasury Department's engagement with industry stakeholders suggests a collaborative approach to future policy development.”

Matteo Greco, a digital asset research analyst at Fineqia, commented on Trump’s crypto reserve plans and shared his expectations from the sector in 2025. 

“If the crypto reserve is implemented more formally, we could expect an official audit in the coming months to verify and publicly disclose the exact number of BTC held by the US government. Additionally, there may be discussions on how the government could acquire more BTC beyond seizures without impacting taxpayers. On the development front, with stablecoins and tokenization gaining mainstream traction, the focus may shift towards establishing a clearer regulatory framework for real-world assets (RWAs) in the US. This would not only drive investment in the sector but also strengthen the dominance of the US dollar as a settlement asset in the digital assets space. Given this trend, it would not be surprising to see the government actively encouraging tokenization initiatives within the US.”