'Crypto president' no more? Trump's tariffs have helped wipe out $1 trillion in value since December

• The crypto market has lost more than $1 trillion in value since its December peak.
• Uncertainty around tariff policy has overshadowed the bullishness generated by Trump's pro-crypto plans.
• Bitcoin tipped into a bear market this week, down as much as 28% from its January record high.

A sell-off that dragged bitcoin into a bear market this week accelerated on Friday after tariff fears started overshadowing President Donald Trump's bullish agenda for the space.

It's an ironic development, considering Trump gave himself the moniker "crypto president" on the campaign trail last year. But after a honeymoon period for the risky assets, investors have instead elected to focus on the wide-reaching nature of Trump's proposed levies.

This was seen on Thursday, with the latest bout of crypto selling triggered by the president reiterating plans to put 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada starting Tuesday.

Bitcoin continued to slide below $80,000 on Friday, hitting a low of $78,225. The world's largest cryptocurrency has fallen as much as 28% from its January 20 record high of $109,241.

Ethereum also sold off on Friday, down 5% to $2,218. Losses this week for the second-largest cryptocurrency have brought it to its lowest price since January 2024.

All told, the total cryptocurrency market has seen over $1 trillion erased since it peaked at $3.72 trillion on December 17, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

"While there are visible signs of change in crypto enforcement policies, the regional tariff wars and bleak consumer readings have dampened investor sentiments," Agne Linge, WeFi's head of growth, wrote on Friday.

She added: "Many might continue to rotate capital from risky assets without guaranteed insulation from these trade wars. Institutional investors appear to be offloading significant bitcoin holdings, signaling a potential shift in market sentiment."

Tariff fears have been weighing on crypto sentiment all month, with the uncertainty of what's to come clouding views even as the market has notched significant regulatory wins. With new leadership at the Securities and Exchange Commission, a key piece of Trump's agenda — less regulation — was advanced in the past week.

But the development paled in comparison to the macro uncertainty facing the sector.

"These are risk assets, and they respond meaningfully to uncertainty," CoinFund's president, Chris Perkins, told Business Insider.

Meanwhile, scant details on some of Trump's bigger ideas, such as the establishment of a national bitcoin stockpile, have left eager crypto players disappointed since his inauguration.

Bitcoin's plight is in line with other risk assets this week. Stocks are headed for their worst weekly performance of the year amid Trump's fresh commitment to placing tariffs on Canada and Mexico, as well as his hint that he might increase levies on China.

On Friday, Standard Chartered suggested that bitcoin could continue its slide through the weekend, given a lack of positive catalysts ahead. Options traders this week had been positioning for bitcoin to drop to as low as $70,000.

The latest reading of the personal consumption expenditures price index on Friday could relieve some pressure, one crypto expert said.

"With PCE aligning with expectations and inflation concerns balanced by upcoming rate cut prospects, BTC may finally get the catalyst it needs to break out of its current $80K-$85K range and push toward the coveted $100K psychological level," Matt Mena, a crypto research strategist at 21Shares, said.

But he added that the latest tariff threats could cause more trouble for the sector if they led to a fresh bout of inflation.