The S&P 500 achieved another record high, while Bitcoin made a notable attempt to reach the $80,000 mark earlier on Saturday. The largest cryptocurrency traded at $78,180 during Asian hours, marking a 0.8% weekly increase and a recovery from a Wednesday low near $75,500, which was triggered by reports of fresh military escalation in Iran.
However, the bounce occurred alongside Friday's reports that Tehran had proposed a new ceasefire to Washington through Pakistan, resulting in a nearly 3% decline in WTI crude to approximately $102 per barrel. Equities experienced a stronger week, with the S&P 500 closing 0.3% higher on Friday at an all-time high, marking its fifth consecutive weekly gain driven by robust tech mega-cap earnings.
The Nasdaq 100 advanced 0.9% to a record high, with Apple gaining 3.2% after exceeding revenue expectations and Oracle climbing 6.5% following news of its collaboration with the Pentagon's classified networks. A significant development in the crypto policy sphere was the Senate's release of the long-negotiated Clarity Act compromise text on Friday, which ended months of negotiations between crypto firms and bank lobbyists.
The agreement, negotiated by Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks, prohibits stablecoin issuers from offering yield based solely on holding reserves but preserves activity-based reward programs that crypto firms use as incentives for platform participation. Coinbase, a central player in the talks, immediately expressed support, with Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal stating that the language "preserves activity-based rewards tied to real participation on crypto platforms and networks, which is what the bank lobby said they wanted." The Senate Banking Committee can now proceed with a markup, formally debating and amending the bill, which clears the way for the legislation to advance further in the Senate. The Treasury and CFTC will have a year after the bill becomes law to establish detailed rules regarding what crypto firms can and cannot do with yield products. Meanwhile, Daniel Reis-Faria, CEO of ZeroStack, noted that Bitcoin's range-bound trading reflects broader macro uncertainty rather than crypto-specific weakness.
Reis-Faria cited ETF outflows and softer demand as symptoms, stating, "It doesn't mean institutions are leaving the market, it just means they're not increasing their exposure right now. If money starts coming back in, especially from institutions or through ETFs, Bitcoin can move higher pretty quickly." Other major cryptocurrencies were mixed, with Ether holding at $2,310, XRP at $1.39, and Solana at $84.57, all relatively flat for the week. Dogecoin stood out, increasing nearly 10% for the week to $0.105, with futures open interest reaching a year-high earlier in the week.
The setup heading into next week remains the same as it has been all month, with Bitcoin requiring a fresh catalyst to break decisively above $78,000, and the most likely sources, including Fed clarity, ETF re-acceleration, or a Hormuz reopening, remaining outside the market's control.