The S&P 500 just closed at another all-time high while Bitcoin hit the $80,000 level again earlier Saturday.
The largest cryptocurrency traded at $78,180 on Saturday, up 0.8% for the week and recovering from Wednesday’s low near $75,500 following new reports of military escalation in Iran. The rebound came alongside reports on Friday that Tehran had transmitted a new ceasefire proposal to Washington via Pakistan, which sent WTI crude falling almost 3% to around $102 a barrel.
Stocks had a much better week. The S&P 500 closed up 0.3% on Friday at an all-time high, marking a fifth straight weekly gain on strong earnings from mega-cap tech stocks.
The Nasdaq 100 advanced 0.9% to its own record. Apple gained 3.2% after a better-than-expected revenue outlook. Oracle rose 6.5% after news that it had joined the list of AI companies working with the Pentagon’s classified networks.
A lot of crypto development has happened on the political side.
The Senate released the long-negotiated compromise text on the Clarity Act on Friday, ending months of negotiations between crypto companies and bank lobbyists. The deal, crafted by Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks, would prohibit stablecoin issuers from offering a return based solely on holding reserves, but would preserve activity-based reward programs that crypto companies structure as incentives for use of their platforms.
Coinbase, which had been at the center of the negotiations, immediately signaled its support, with legal director Paul Grewal saying the language “preserves activity-based rewards tied to actual participation on crypto platforms and networks, which is what the banking lobby has said it wants.”
A markup, the Senate Banking Committee hearing at which the bill is formally debated and amended, can now proceed and pave the way for the legislation to advance further in the Senate. Treasury and the CFTC would have one year after the bill takes effect to draft detailed rules on what crypto companies can and cannot do with yield products.
At the same time, Daniel Reis-Faria, CEO of ZeroStack, said in a note that limited Bitcoin trading reflects broader macroeconomic indecision rather than crypto-specific weakness.
“The fact that Bitcoin remains below the $78,000 mark isn’t really about the cryptocurrency at the moment, but rather what’s happening in the broader market. The Fed’s holding of rates wasn’t a surprise, but there’s no clear direction on what comes next, and that’s keeping investors from jumping in.”
Reis-Faria pointed to ETF outflows and weaker demand as symptoms. “This doesn’t mean institutions are exiting the market, it just means they’re not increasing their exposure at the moment. If money starts coming back, especially from institutions or through ETFs, Bitcoin can rise quite quickly.”
Other majors were co-ed. Ether held $2,310, XRP at $1.39, solana at $84.57, all close to the stable level this week. Dogecoin was a standout, up nearly 10% for the week to $0.105, with futures open interest hitting a one-year high earlier in the week.
The setup for next week is the same as it has been all month. Bitcoin needs a new catalyst to decisively move above $78,000, and the most likely sources, clarity from the Fed, ETF re-acceleration, or the reopening of Hormuz, are all beyond the market’s control.
