TLDR
- Bitfarms and Cipher Mining surged 26% and 20% on Monday after Trump walked back his 100% China tariff threat
- Trump misunderstood China’s rare earth export controls, causing Friday’s market panic before clarifying over the weekend
- Friday’s crash wiped out $19 billion in crypto positions, exceeding the FTX collapse as the largest liquidation event ever
- OpenAI’s Broadcom chip partnership and Bloom Energy’s $5 billion data center deal lifted mining stock sentiment
- Treasury Secretary confirmed proposed 100% tariffs on China won’t necessarily happen
Bitcoin mining stocks posted double-digit gains on Monday as markets recovered from Friday’s selloff. The rally followed President Trump’s clarification on Chinese trade policy.
Bitfarms jumped 26% to lead the recovery. Cipher Mining gained 20% while Bitdeer, IREN and MARA Holdings each rose approximately 10%. The gains reversed steep losses from Friday’s trading session.
Friday’s market crash was triggered by Trump’s announcement of 100% tariffs on Chinese imports. Investors feared an escalating trade war. Markets sold off sharply on the news.
Trump’s tariff threat was based on a misinterpretation of China’s export policy. China had expanded restrictions on rare earth mineral exports for defense and semiconductor use. Trump viewed these controls as aggressive action against the United States.
Trump Walks Back Tariff Threat
Over the weekend, Trump reversed his position. He posted on Truth Social that investors shouldn’t worry about China. He described President Xi as “highly respected” and said he “just had a bad moment.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent provided additional clarity Monday. He stated the proposed 100% tariffs “don’t have to happen.” His comments helped ease concerns about US-China trade relations.
Market commentator The Kobeissi Letter confirmed the misinterpretation. The firm noted Trump had misunderstood export controls announced on October 10th. These controls were standard trade measures rather than hostile actions.
AI Deals Boost Mining Sector
Positive AI sector news contributed to Monday’s rally. OpenAI announced a partnership with Broadcom to develop custom chips for artificial intelligence and machine learning. The deal highlights growing infrastructure demand for AI applications.
Bloom Energy signed a $5 billion agreement with Brookfield Asset Management. The partnership will deploy fuel cells for AI data centers. Bitcoin mining companies have been pivoting toward AI computing services to diversify revenue.
Other crypto stocks saw modest gains. Strategy rose 2.8% while Coinbase traded flat. Robinhood increased 1%. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 gained 2.1% and 1.4% respectively.
Record Crypto Liquidations
Friday’s turmoil hit crypto markets harder than stocks. The flash crash liquidated $19 billion in leveraged positions. This surpassed the FTX collapse as the largest liquidation event in crypto history.
Bitcoin held up better than alternative cryptocurrencies. Altcoins experienced steeper percentage losses during the selloff. The volatility prompted calls for regulatory scrutiny.
Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek urged regulators to investigate exchange operations during the crash. He questioned whether platforms maintained proper controls and pricing. His concerns focused on potential system failures during extreme volatility.
Hyperliquid accounted for roughly half of all liquidations. The decentralized exchange saw $10.3 billion in positions wiped out. Binance and Bybit also reported substantial liquidations.
Binance faced questions after token prices briefly displayed as zero. The exchange attributed this to a user interface bug affecting certain pairs. The glitch didn’t impact actual trading execution.
Ethena’s USDe stablecoin lost its dollar peg during the chaos. Founder Guy Young explained the depeg was isolated to Binance. The issue stemmed from the exchange’s orderbook mechanics and temporary deposit restrictions. Market makers couldn’t arbitrage the price difference during the event.
