Both Cryptocurrency and TradFi markets have begun to slip. There are a variety of current macroeconomic events, and those looming large, that can be attributed to Bitcoin being down today.

As of May 24th, Bitcoin has slipped below $27k following a 2% drop in the last 24 hours. The leading cryptocurrency has shed around 10% in the past month as various macroeconomic and regulatory pressures have stifled the positive sentiment that pushed $BTC and other cryptos to month highs earlier in the year.

This post will explore the main events that appear to explain why Bitcoin is down today. The primary events driving the market are a combination of regulatory uncertainty and worries surrounding the ability of the United States to pay its debts.

Debt Ceiling Looms Large

All eyes are turning to the U.S. Congress as the government continues to stumble toward its self-imposed debt ceiling.

The only way to avert the nightmarish scenario of the U.S. defaulting on its debt obligations is for Congress to increase the borrowing limit. Despite months of chatte the Biden administration hasn't been able to convince Congress to budge on the matter.

With every day that passes, the Biden administration inches closer to the debt ceiling, fueling uncertainty in global markets. Naturally, the most risk-on assets, such as Bitcoin, suffer when the market is gripped by uncertainty.

Although the U.S. defaulting on its debt obligations could result in an unprecedented market crash, it's important to note that we've been here before. Almost every U.S. administration has come close to defaulting; eventually, Congress always gives in and raises the borrowing limit.

Top Republicans Call Out Janet Yellen

As if the markets didn't need any further alarming, US Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen, claimed that the United States would indeed "run out of cash to pay its bills" as of June 1st. The statement itself bestowed doubt on the wider global economy, however, not everyone was convinced.

"We would like to see more transparency on how they came to that date," remarked House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, clearly challenging statements made by Yellen oi the record.

During an appearance on CNBC yesterday, Senator Ted Cruz claimed that the economy was being run by "20-30-year-old Marxists", and then also appeared to question President Joe Biden's cognitive wellness, causing a lack of engagement on the debt ceiling talks.

The combined thoughts of these two top Republicans sent the equities markets tumbling to daily lows. As we have seen over time, when the stock market sees pullbacks, it can also reciprocally pull Bitcoin down.

U.S. Regulatory Uncertainty Continues

The U.S. regulatory bodies are a constant concern for crypto investors and traders. Even though the European Union and seve East Asian countries have established relatively clear regulatory frameworks for

digital assets, the U.S. languishes in uncertainty.

The ongoing lack of clarity is resulting in

volatility in the market as traders are left

trying to guess what the future holds for

Bitcoin. The U.S. Securities and Exchange

Commission (SEC) is expected to sue

Coinbase, according to a statement from the

exchange.

In response to the legal spat with Coinbase, several leading figures in the crypto space pointed out that it's difficult to remain on the right side of the law due to the lack of a clear regulatory framework.

The SEC's response to calls for clarity has only added fuel to the fire. The regulator stated that it would not be rushed into "formal rulemaking" and should be allowed to police crypto case-by-case.

The SEC's strong-armed approach appearsset to continue, and now every bit of news regarding regulation drives volatility often in favor of the bears, as we've seen in the last 24 hours.

Crypto Winter Impact Bitcoin Conference

The mood around the annual Bitcoin conference held in Miami has been dampened by the crypto winter. The giant networking event, where general admission tickets sell for around $1,000, attracted over 30,000 guests last year.

This year the organizers expect attendance to be around 50% lower than last year, reflecting a potentially concerning trend in the industry. Although the event itself isn't a major mar' mover, the drop in attendance has been picked up by social media, where many users are citing it as an example of the industry's struggles during the bear market that began last year.crypto

$30 Million $BTC Futures Liquidated

On-chain data from Coinglass suggests that

traders have been feeling bearish over the

last 24 hours. As a result, around $30 million

worth of Bitcoin futures has been liquidated,

with most positions being long positions

betting on higher prices.

Although $25 million of liquidations were long positions, around $6 million in short positions were also liquidated, which reflects the volatility of $BTC's price in the last 24 hours.

Hacker Takes Over Tornado Cash

The popular crypto-mixer, Tornado Cash, suffered a potentially critical blow when a hacker took control of the project's DAO through a voter fraud attack. The hack sent shockwaves through the market, driving down the price of several cryptos, including Bitcoin. The hacker gained access to the network's $TORN governance tokens held in the DAO's treasury. The hacker has since proposed withdrawing his attack in a proposal that could pass on May 26th, but their true motivations remain unclear

Conclusion

To sum up, there are no definitive ways of pinpointing exactly why Bitcoin is down today. However, it can be said with some assurance that a combination of the above factors and events has affected the level fear disseminating into both TradFi and Crypto markets.