By Omkar Godbole
Bitcoin and the U.S. stock futures trimmed early losses as the White House, European Union and the U.K. signaled economic sanctions on Russia in response to President Putin's decision to send troops into eastern Ukraine and formally recognized two rebel-held regions in the country.Financial Times, Boris Johnson, UK prime minister, said the"first barrage of economic sanctions" would be announced on Tuesday, warning that Putin was bent on a"full-scale invasion of Ukraine".
While it is challenging to pin down the exact cause of the recovery in bitcoin and stock futures, the West's decision to steer clear of military engagement and inflict economic damage via sanctions may have calmed fears of a full-scale war and put a floor under asset prices. "This is a strategic defeat for Putin and a full-scale war is even less likely after today than before," macro fund managerThe going action in the currency markets hints at a continued risk reset in crypto and stock markets during the American hours. The growth-sensitive Aussie dollar and Kiwi dollar were trading 0.5% and 0.64% higher against the safe-haven greenback as of writing and the AUD/JPY was up 0.74%.
Bitcoin was trading near $37,700 at press time, representing a 1.8% gain on the day and the futures tied to the S&P 500 were down 0.3%. The cryptocurrency fell to a 20-day low of $36,250 and stock futures were down 1% during the Asian hours on fears that a war would be impossible to avoid.
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