The S&P 500 achieved a new record high, while Bitcoin briefly approached the $80,000 mark earlier on Saturday. The largest cryptocurrency was trading at $78,180 in Asian hours, marking a 0.8% weekly increase and recovering from a Wednesday low of nearly $75,500, which was triggered by reports of fresh military escalation in Iran. However, the bounce occurred alongside reports that Tehran had proposed a new ceasefire to Washington through Pakistan, resulting in a nearly 3% decline in WTI crude to around $102 per barrel. Equities experienced a strong 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 on AI projects. A significant development in the crypto space was the release of the long-negotiated Clarity Act compromise text by the Senate, ending 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 reward programs tied to actual platform usage.
Coinbase expressed support for the agreement, with its Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, stating that the language preserves activity-based rewards tied to real participation on crypto platforms and networks. The Senate Banking Committee can now proceed with a markup, formally debating and amending the bill, which paves the way for the legislation to advance further in the Senate. The Treasury and the CFTC will have a year to establish detailed rules for crypto firms regarding yield products after the bill becomes law. Meanwhile, Daniel Reis-Faria, CEO of ZeroStack, noted that Bitcoin's range-bound trading reflects broader macro uncertainty rather than crypto-specific weakness, citing ETF outflows and softer demand as symptoms.
Reis-Faria emphasized that this does not indicate institutions are leaving the market but rather not increasing their exposure at present. If institutional investment returns, especially through ETFs, Bitcoin could move higher rapidly. 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 with a nearly 10% weekly increase to $0.105, as futures open interest reached a year-high earlier in the week. The setup heading into the next week remains unchanged from the past month, with Bitcoin requiring a new catalyst to break decisively above $78,000, and potential sources such as Fed clarity, ETF re-acceleration, or a Hormuz reopening remaining outside the market's control.