Bitcoin wilts as oil and rates rise. Clarity Act odds tumble to 38%

Bitcoin price declined to approximately $65,500 on July 23, 2026, pressured by rising oil prices and increasing U.S. Treasury yields, which weighed on risk assets including major cryptocurrencies like ether, solana, and XRP. Bitcoin had fallen about 0.7% since midnight UTC and extended its pullback from a high near $66,700 reached the previous day. The increase in oil prices, with West Texas Intermediate crude reaching $88.60 per barrel—the highest since June 11—signaled potential inflationary pressures that could complicate central bank efforts to reduce interest rates.

U.S. Treasury yields climbed notably, with the two-year yield jumping to 4.31%, the highest since February 2025, and the 10-year yield rising to 4.66%, the highest since May 2026. Higher yields make non-yielding assets like bitcoin less attractive compared to fixed-income securities, possibly prompting investors to shift away from speculative holdings toward bonds.

Market sentiment further soured amid reports of a significant escalation in U.S. military operations linked to Iran, including the deployment of a B-1 long-range bomber to strike targets associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This suggests a potential broader campaign beyond the limited prior strikes.

Additional uncertainty comes from regulatory developments. Key Senate Democrats criticized the latest draft of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, calling it inadequate on ethics and other important provisions. Following this criticism, betting odds on the Clarity Act’s passage dropped sharply from 46% to 38% according to decentralized markets on Polymarket. The updated bill, released by Senate Republicans, includes a prominent ethics provision supported by the White House and President Donald Trump, described by Senator Bernie Moreno as “the most powerful ethics language in U.S. history.”