Russia-Ukraine conflict wipes over $200 billion from crypto markets — Cardano, Avalanche, and Polkadot worst hit

• The global crypto market has lost nearly 10% of its value amid the tussle between Russia and Ukraine.
• Both Bitcoin and Ether touched monthly lows as Russia began its “special military operation” against Ukraine.
• Bitcoin’s price has dropped to ₹2.7 lakh , while Ether dropped to under ₹1.8 lakh.

The ongoing tussle between Russia and Ukraine is sparing no asset class. Just as the equity market saw massive sell offs, the cryptocurrency market has plummeted by nearly 10% over the last 24 hours. Most leading cryptocurrencies, barring stablecoins, are seeing double digit dips.

Data shows that over $200 billion has been liquidated since Russia — and its President Vladimir Putin — announced its ‘special military operation’ against Ukraine.
Which cryptocurrencies are the worst hit?
Amid the crypto market crash, Ethereum, Cardano, Avalanche and Polkadot are the worst hit, aside from memecoins Dogecoin and Shiba Inu.

The only leading cryptocurrencies that have been able to limit their fall to under 10% over the last 24 hours are Bitcoin and Terra.

Cryptocurrency	Fall in market value over the last 24 hours
Bitcoin	8.5%
Ethereum	12.7%
Binance Coin	11.4%
Solana	12%
Cardano	18%
Terra	9.5%
Avalanche	18.2%
Dogecoin	16.7%
Polkadot	16.2%
Shiba Inu	18.9%

Source: Coinbase as of 6:30 pm, Indian Standard Time (IST)

Cryptocurrencies lose their sheen as ‘digital gold’
The value of cryptocurrencies have been plummeting since the New Year kicked in, sparking speculation that another ‘crypto winter’ may be in the making. Bitcoin’s price, for instance, has dropped by about 50% since November.

Russia’s moves against Ukraine seem to be making matters worse. However, the fact that the value of most cryptocurrencies are going through the wringer may not come as a big surprise to investors. Crypto markets have shown a tendency to react to traditional markets in recent times.

Rather than being an asset where investors can park their money when the global economy gets risky — whether that’s because of inflation or geopolitical tensions — cryptocurrencies are no longer being viewed as a ‘safe haven’ investment.