Bitcoin drops below $63,000 amid AI selloff and Middle East tensions

Equities and macro forces drive the move

Bitcoin recovered to trade down 1.2% since midnight UTC after the intraday drop. Ether lost 1.74% on Friday, trailing Bitcoin's pain. Total crypto market capitalization shed 1.86% to $2.16 trillion, wiping roughly $43 billion in notional value.

The move wasn't isolated to crypto. Nasdaq 100 index futures dropped 1.91% and S&P 500 futures slipped 0.96%, pointing to macro forces driving the broader selloff. Japan's Nikkei 225 index dropped 4% on Friday, signaling Asia bore the brunt of the tech unwind.

Safe-haven assets caught bids. The Dollar Index rose to 100.75 while gold advanced 0.61% to climb back above $4,000, a classic risk-off pattern.

Oversold signals amid the selloff

The average relative strength index across crypto pairs dipped to 42.23, approaching oversold conditions. Readings below 30 typically signal capitulation; at 42, the market's showing stress but not yet panic. That gap matters heading into the weekend, when liquidity thins and volatility can spike on thin order books.

"The market is ending the week with two bruises: AI fatigue and Hormuz heat. The semiconductor selloff has gone from profit-taking to position-clearing, dragging Asia toward its worst levels in months." — Patrick Munnelly, Tickmill Group

Volumes surge despite the rout

Not all data pointed downward. CEX spot trading volumes climbed 15.3% to $1.11 trillion in June, the first increase in five months, suggesting retail participation held up. RWA perpetual volumes surged to a record $311 billion in June, a sign that tokenized real-world assets continued attracting leverage despite the broader selloff.

Traders will watch whether support holds into Monday or if geopolitical headlines push Bitcoin lower.