Bitcoin weakened to its lowest level in more than two weeks on Monday, dropping as much as 2.9% to $76,009 amid escalating geopolitical turmoil in the Middle East.

The original cryptocurrency later recovered slightly to trade near $77,000, but the broader digital asset market remained under pressure.

>>> CFTC Appoints DJ Hennes to Lead Market Participants Division

Ether and Solana also faced declines as rapid liquidations swept across the market.

Massive Liquidations and ETF Outflows

Coinglass data showed nearly $500 million in bullish crypto bets were liquidated within a 15-minute window during early Asia trading on Monday.

Over the past 24 hours, more than $800 million in long positions were completely unwound, according to the data.

US-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded over $1 billion in net outflows last week, the first such contraction since late January.

>>> NuScale Power Targets AI Data Center Energy Demand with SMR Technology

Wall Street experienced a highly volatile session, with stocks and oil prices whipsawing as investors weighed conflicting signals about a potential US-Iran deal to restore energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

"Bitcoin's pullback is a macro story," said Rachael Lucas, an analyst at BTC Markets. "Risk appetite has repriced, and Bitcoin is moving with it."

Strategy Inc. Bucks the Trend

In contrast to the sell-off, Strategy Inc. purchased $2.01 billion worth of Bitcoin during the seven days ending May 17, its largest weekly total in four weeks.

>>> Cattle Futures Post Strong Weekly Gains; Hog Downtrend Continues

The firm, led by Michael Saylor, financed the acquisitions mainly by selling $1.95 billion of its Stretch perpetual preferred shares and $83.7 million in common stock.

Strategy Inc. now holds approximately $64 billion in Bitcoin, making it the largest corporate owner of the digital currency globally.

Despite the purchase, shares of Strategy Inc. fell 6.1% to $166.63, while Coinbase Global Inc. dropped 31% and Circle Internet Group Inc. slipped 2.3%.

The widespread liquidations were triggered when Bitcoin breached a critical technical support level around $77,800.

>>> SoundHound AI Stock: Bullish Growth vs. Bearish Financial Struggles

Lucas noted that structural support remains firmly between $76,000 and $76,800, and a confirmed close above $80,000 would be the first meaningful signal that selling pressure is exhausting.