Bitcoin falls 4.7% as West Asia tension spurs caution across markets

Bitcoin speculators banking on a seasonal October melt-up faced an early reality check as deepening tension in the Middle East spurred a bout of caution across global markets.

The digital asset fell 4.7 per cent on Tuesday, the most in nearly a month, after Iran fired about 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in a sharp but brief escalation of hostilities between the two adversaries. The token pared some of the drop on Wednesday, changing hands at around $61,260 as of 7:43 a.m. in New York.