The S&P 500 achieved a new record high, while Bitcoin briefly approached the $80,000 mark earlier on Saturday. The largest cryptocurrency traded at $78,180 in Asian hours, marking a 0.8% weekly increase and recovering from a Wednesday low near $75,500, which was triggered by reports of fresh military escalation in Iran.
The recovery coincided with Friday's reports of Tehran's new ceasefire proposal to Washington, resulting in a nearly 3% decline in WTI crude to around $102 per barrel. Equities experienced a stronger week, with the S&P 500 closing 0.3% higher on Friday, marking its fifth consecutive weekly gain, driven by robust earnings from tech mega-caps. 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 crypto development occurred on the policy front, as the Senate released the long-negotiated Clarity Act compromise text on Friday, concluding months of negotiations between crypto firms and bank lobbyists.
The agreement, facilitated 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, a central player in the talks, 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, aligning with the bank lobby's demands." The Senate Banking Committee can now proceed with a markup, formally debating and amending the bill, paving the way for the legislation to advance further in the Senate. The Treasury and CFTC will have a year to establish detailed rules for crypto firms' 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 that they are not increasing their exposure at present. If institutional investment or ETF inflows resume, Bitcoin can rapidly move higher. 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, gaining nearly 10% to $0.105, with futures open interest reaching a year-high earlier in the week. The market setup heading into the next week remains unchanged, with Bitcoin requiring a fresh catalyst to break decisively above $78,000.
The most likely sources of this catalyst, including Fed clarity, ETF re-acceleration, or a Hormuz reopening, remain outside the market's control.