Bitcoin Plunges to $95K Amid False Strategy Sale Rumors

The cryptocurrency market experienced significant turbulence as Bitcoin’s price nosedived to $95,500, marking its lowest level since May 2025. The sell-off intensified amid circulating rumors that Strategy, one of Bitcoin’s largest corporate holders, had begun selling its substantial BTC holdings. These claims originated from a questionable social media profile with just 10,000 followers on X, known for making bold and often incorrect statements in the past. The speculation gained unexpected credibility when high-profile market observers like Crypto Tony, an account with over 550,000 followers, reshared the unverified information.

The timing of these rumors proved particularly damaging to market sentiment. Bitcoin had briefly jumped to $104,000 following US President Trump’s signing of legislation to end the government shutdown, but quickly erased those gains as the Strategy sale speculation spread through trading communities. The lack of evident significant reasons behind this market-wide decline, unlike the April crash that was fueled by tariff uncertainty, made traders particularly sensitive to any negative news, amplifying the impact of the unverified claims.

Blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain provided crucial clarity that debunked the sale rumors. The company confirmed that Strategy had indeed moved 58,915 BTC, but these transfers were between internal wallets for custody purposes rather than sales. The actual transfer value was nearly $5.77 billion, significantly higher than the $1 billion initially claimed in the original social media post. This revelation aligned with Michael Saylor’s repeated public statements that Strategy has no intention to sell any of its BTC holdings.

Strategy’s consistent accumulation strategy further contradicted the sale speculation. The company has been adding to its Bitcoin position almost weekly for over a year and currently holds more than 641,000 BTC as of press time. The crypto community was quick to refute the rumors even before Lookonchain’s confirmation, with many analysts suggesting the movements were likely internal wallet shuffling rather than preparation for market sales. This pattern of internal transfers for custody optimization is common among large institutional holders managing security and operational requirements.

Despite the rapid debunking of the sale rumors, the damage to Bitcoin’s price was already substantial. The cryptocurrency remained in a free-fall state for over 24 hours, plunging from its brief recovery above $104,000 to the $95,500 level that represented a six-month low. The liquidations continued to grow throughout the downturn, reaching $1.2 billion on CoinGlass with over 260,000 traders affected daily. The scale of liquidations highlighted the leveraged positions that were wiped out during the rapid price decline.

The incident underscores the cryptocurrency market’s continued vulnerability to social media-driven speculation, particularly when involving major holders like Strategy. The speed at which unverified information from sources with limited credibility can influence market movements reveals structural weaknesses in how information is processed and validated in digital asset markets. The episode also demonstrates how quickly gains from positive macroeconomic developments, such as the resolution of the government shutdown, can be erased by negative sentiment, regardless of its factual basis.