Crypto Market Slips as Iran Rejects Claims of U.S. Peace Talks

The crypto market has retraced some of its gains from earlier in the day after the Iranian parliament speaker, Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, denied claims that Iran was negotiating with the U.S. Bitcoin is currently trading just above $70,000 and now risks losing this level amid contrasting claims from the U.S. and Iran.

Crypto Market Retraces as Iran Denies Peace Talks

The total crypto market cap has fallen below $2.4 trillion from an intraday high of around $2.42 trillion, according to TradingView data. This follows a statement by the Iranian parliament speaker, who rejected claims of negotiations with the U.S.

In an X post, he said they haven’t held any negotiations with the U.S. and described claims of peace talks as fake news, which the U.S. is using to manipulate financial and oil markets and to escape the situation it now finds itself in.

As CoinGape reported earlier in the day, Bitcoin and the broader crypto market spiked following Trump’s claims that the U.S. and Iran were having talks to end the war. Axios also reported that U.S. envoys were negotiating with Ghalibaf, who has now denied these claims.

“Our people demand the complete and humiliating punishment of the aggressors. All officials stand firmly behind their Leader and people until this goal is achieved,” Ghalibaf said. Amid the Iranian parliament speaker’s statement, Trump reiterated that both sides were negotiating during an event in Memphis.

“I think there’s a very good chance we’re going to end up in a deal. And so we’re giving it five days and then we’re going to see where that takes us,” he said. Meanwhile, the Financial Times reported that Pakistan has pitched Islamabad as the potential venue for peace talks between the U.S. and Iran.

Why Peace Talks Are Likely Happening

Market commentator The Kobeissi Letter opined that there are likely ongoing U.S.-Iran peace talks. “Why? Because we have seen this EXACT sequence of events MULTIPLE times in previous deals negotiated by President Trump,” they said.

They noted that this scenario is mirroring the China trade deal last year. Back then, the U.S. revealed that negotiations were ongoing, while China denied the claims, before the two sides eventually struck a deal three weeks later. Just as before, the Bitcoin price and the broader crypto market could record significant gains if the U.S. and Iran reach a deal to end the war, now in its fourth week.

The Kobeissi Letter further explained that Iran’s strategy has been to pressure the U.S. through the capital and energy markets. As such, Iran doesn’t want to lose its leverage by allowing these markets to stabilize until they have reached a definitive deal. “That said, volatility will persist until there is a clear agreement in place, and broader market normalization after this historic shock will take months,” they warned.