Iran’s Revolutionary Guard seized two container ships in the Strait of Hormuz on April 22, hours after President Trump indefinitely extended the ceasefire with Tehran, while confirming that the US naval blockade of Iranian ports would remain in place.
Summary
- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz and fired on a third, alleging maritime violations.
- Trump extended the ceasefire with Iran to allow for new peace talks, but kept the US naval blockade active.
- Brent crude oil surpassed $100 per barrel following the incidents, adding pressure to global energy markets and crypto assets.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy announced on April 22 that it had seized two container ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, citing what it described as maritime violations, according to NBC News and CNBC. The seizures came hours after President Trump announced an indefinite extension of the ceasefire with Iran, saying he was giving Tehran’s leaders time to produce a unified peace proposal, while making clear that the US naval blockade of Iranian ports would not be lifted.
Seizures in Iran’s Strait of Hormuz shake fragile ceasefire
The two ships, the MSC Francesca and the Epaminondas, were escorted into Iranian waters after being intercepted by the IRGC Navy, and the Guard claimed that one of the ships was linked to Israel without providing supporting evidence. A third ship was also reported to have been attacked and disabled off the coast of Iran. CNBC reported Brent crude briefly surpassed $100 a barrel after the incidents, with international benchmark prices rising more than 1.8% as markets weighed the impact on a waterway that normally carries about 20% of the world’s supply of oil and liquefied natural gas.
Trump extends ceasefire but maintains blockade
Trump had previously promised not to extend the ceasefire beyond its original deadline, but changed course on April 21 and announced the extension to give Iranian leaders time to produce a unified response to the US terms. NPR reported that Trump posted on Truth Social that Iran is “collapsing financially,” losing $500 million a day under the blockade, and that the United States loses nothing by maintaining it. Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi rejected the administration’s framework, calling the blockade “an act of war” and a violation of the ceasefire agreement in its own right. Peace talks planned for Islamabad have stalled and Iran’s negotiating team has refused to participate as long as the blockade continues.
What the Hormuz crisis means for the Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency markets
The Strait of Hormuz has been a direct driver of Bitcoin volatility since the conflict began in February. As crypto.news has done trackedEach escalation event in the strait has triggered immediate Bitcoin selling rather than safe-haven buying, with BTC falling below $74,000 earlier this week as prospects for peace talks faded. Oil prices remaining above $100 per barrel underpin the inflation narrative that has suppressed Federal Reserve rate cut expectations, creating a prolonged headwind for risk assets including cryptocurrencies. Any resolution that reopens the strait and returns oil to pre-war levels, around $65 to $70 a barrel, would represent, according to analysts covered by crypto.news, the largest positive catalyst for digital asset markets from Bitcoin’s all-time high of $126,000 in October 2025.
The situation in the Strait of Hormuz remains highly unstable, and Iran’s seizure of the two vessels and the breakdown of the Islamabad talks raise the risk of further escalation before any diplomatic resolution is reached.
