Bitcoin retreats to $79K as U.S.-Iran strikes spook markets and funding rates hit a 10-year negative record!

Bitcoin pulled back from a midweek high of $81,500 to around $79,000 after U.S. forces struck Iranian targets following attacks on American naval destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz. The geopolitical flare-up rippled across risk assets — Brent crude jumped 1.2% to roughly $101 a barrel, the MSCI All Country World Index slipped 0.3%, and Asian shares fell 1.2% — though Wall Street futures held 0.2% higher, pointing to profit-taking rather than a structural reversal.

Among major altcoins, Dogecoin led losses with a 3.8% drop to $0.1063, Ether fell 2% to $2,278, XRP shed 1.7% to $1.38, and BNB lost 0.7% to $638. Solana and TRON were the lone holdouts in green territory.

The more structural story is in the futures market. Bitcoin funding rates have now been negative for 67 consecutive days — the longest streak in a decade per K33 Research — meaning shorts have been paying longs for over…