Bitcoin jumped above $80,000, reaching its highest level since April, as falling Treasury yields, Washington's push for new crypto rules and a broader rally lifted the entire market. Since Monday, the wider crypto market has added roughly $450 billion in value.

Bitcoin first pushed back above $75,000, its highest level since April at the time, bringing its four-day gain to 20%. The move accelerated after U.S. President Donald Trump told Congress to pass legislation that could give the crypto industry a boost, and the cryptocurrency has now cleared $80,000, taking its gain over the past four days to 30%.

Even after the recent rally, bitcoin remains well below its 2026 peak of $94,820, reached in mid-January, and its all-time high of $126,198, set on October 6 last year. The cryptocurrency is still down 18% in 2026 and sits 43% off the record price it achieved in October.

Trump, the Clarity Act and Hyperliquid

Trump pressed Congress to pass the Clarity Act, a bill that would clarify the circumstances under which crypto is considered a security or a commodity — the dividing line that determines whether the Securities and Exchange Commission or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversees a given token. He also raised the idea of regulating Hyperliquid, the decentralized exchange that has become a popular venue for perpetual futures trading. Hyperliquid's HYPE token is up about 25% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko.

The bill already cleared the House of Representatives in July 2025 with bipartisan support, leaving the Senate as the remaining hurdle. People in crypto say they need a law because regulations can change when politics change and get dragged through the courts. Getting the bill passed will not be simple: many Democrats and some Republicans say they will not support it without tougher language stopping political officials, including Trump, from making money from their own crypto businesses. Trump disclosed more than $1.4 billion in earnings from his family's crypto ventures in 2025.

ETF volume and rising volatility

Falling Treasury yields helped drive heavy Bitcoin ETF trading. Trading in the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT), the largest U.S. spot bitcoin ETF by assets, was already more than 4.5 times its 30-day average before the Hyperliquid news came out.

Bitcoin is getting more volatile, too. Volmex Labs' BVIV Index, a gauge of expected 30-day price swings derived from options markets, moved above 40 after dropping to a year-to-date low of 35.5 on Friday.

Ether and crypto stocks rally

Ether rose 2.46% to $2,272, its highest price in more than three months. Crypto stocks rallied as traders watched the political fight over new U.S. crypto rules: Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: COIN), the largest U.S. crypto exchange, gained 6.05%, Strategy (NASDAQ: MSTR), the biggest corporate holder of bitcoin, was up 4%, bitcoin mining machine maker Canaan (NASDAQ: CAN) jumped 10.37%, stablecoin issuer Circle (NYSE: CRCL) rose 3.8%, and retail trading platform Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD) added 0.42%.

Gold extends its gains

Gold was moving higher early Friday. Gold futures rose 1.67% to $4,647.70, while spot gold gained 1.55% to $4,588.08. That puts the metal up 4.7% for the week, with futures now getting close to their highest level in three months.

It has been a very different story from earlier in the year. Gold had climbed to almost $5,600 before falling back hard, and the three months through June ended up being its worst quarter since 2013.

Treasuries steady, oil slips

Longer-term U.S. Treasury yields barely moved Friday as traders continued to watch the Treasury Department's extended debt buyback program, a schedule of repurchases of older, off-the-run securities that began in 2024 and is aimed at improving trading liquidity. The 30-year Treasury yield was unchanged at 5.2371%, and that maturity is the main focus of the government's repurchase plan. The 10-year yield was also basically flat at 4.6882%, a rate that matters across borrowing costs, including mortgages, car loans and credit cards. The 2-year yield, which tends to react more closely to expectations around Federal Reserve policy, was unchanged at 4.1828%.

Oil was going the other way. At 4:50 a.m. ET Friday, Brent crude futures were down 0.8%, while West Texas Intermediate futures for October delivery slipped 0.89%. Brent is still heading for a monthly gain of almost 6%, after rising 5.95% last week. The international oil benchmark finished Thursday above $93 a barrel, marking its first close above that level since July 24.

Source: Cryptopolitan