Airstrikes, Samsung's Crypto Bet, and CME Gaps Rattle Bitcoin Markets

Bitcoin opened Thursday at $74,332 before sliding further to $73,285 by early morning as U.S. Central Command launched airstrikes on Iranian drone facilities near the Strait of Hormuz. Investors pulled back from riskier assets as the standoff stoked fears of disrupted oil flows and sticky inflation, with the Federal Reserve potentially forced to raise interest rates for the first time in years.

The geopolitical shock dealt a sharp blow to derivatives markets. CoinDesk reported that BTC dropped to its lowest level since April 13 and ETH broke below $2,000 as nearly $900,000,000 in leveraged long positions were wiped out in a single session, one of the largest single-day liquidation events of 2026.

Samsung Makes a $408M Move Into Korean Crypto

Separate from the market turmoil, Samsung Securities and affiliated Samsung units announced plans to acquire a $408,000,000 stake in Dunamu, the operator of South Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Samsung Securities alone is set to take a 2% stake in Dunamu worth over $200,000,000 from affiliates of technology conglomerate Kakao, signaling deep institutional conviction in domestic crypto infrastructure even amid global volatility.

On the structural side of markets, the CME Group's launch of round-the-clock bitcoin futures trading is set to eliminate the long-standing weekend price gap that traders have tracked for years. The move marks another step toward fully integrated institutional crypto markets, though CoinDesk noted that three CME gaps remain unresolved heading into the new trading regime. Analysts say the shift removes a key source of short-term speculation that had generated predictable post-weekend price swings for retail and institutional traders alike.