Bitcoin fell Friday after Tesla CEO Elon Musk put out a cryptic tweet hinting at a breakup with the largest cryptocurrency.
Musk tweeted a broken heart with the bitcoin logo and a picture showing a couple in the midst of a breakup during the Asian hours.
The crypto community took it as a sign of the billionaire distancing himself from bitcoin and offered the cryptocurrency, leading to price losses.
Bitcoin fell nearly 7%, hitting lows under $36,500 and reversing Thursday's rally to $39,200. Other cryptocurrencies including ether, cardano, polkadot, and dogecoin followed suit, suffering relatively bigger losses.
The pullback poured cold water over the optimism generated by the symmetrical-triangle breakout confirmed on Thursday.
"The failed breakout is not a good sign," Delta Exchange CEO Pankaj Balani said. "We could see deeper losses if the recent range is breached to the downside."
Bitcoin is currently down more than 40% from the record-high $64,801 reached on April 14.
The cryptocurrency fell by 35% last month after Tesla delisted bitcoin as means of payment, citing environmental concerns. The move quashed hopes for widespread corporate adoption.
Musk's latest tweet may further amplify those fears.
Data provided by Skew shows the options market is biased bearish, with long put trades accounting for 29% of the flows seen today and short call trades accounting for 30%.
Investors typically buy puts and sell calls when the market is expected to drop.
Correction (Jun. 4, 2021 15:03 UTC): Bitcoin is down more than 40% from its all-time highs reached on April 14, not 70% as mistakenly written in an earlier version.
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