Bitcoin remained below the $65,000 level on Friday as markets digested renewed geopolitical tensions, higher oil prices, and uncertainty surrounding upcoming U.S. economic data.
BTC was trading around $64,700, with little change over the past 24 hours, while the broader CoinDesk 20 (CD20) index declined 0.2% during the same timeframe.
Brent crude prices climbed above $83 per barrel after Iran-aligned Houthi forces from Yemen carried out an attack on Saudi Arabia, intensifying concerns over escalating instability in the Middle East.
Treasury yields eased slightly but remained elevated, with the 10-year U.S. note still near 4.67%. Fidelity global macro director Jurrien Timmer previously warned that history shows markets tend to face challenges when long-term yields remain above the 4.5% threshold.
Sustained increases in oil prices could fuel inflation concerns, while elevated bond yields may continue tightening financial conditions. The combination could reduce expectations for quick Federal Reserve rate cuts and place additional pressure on Bitcoin and other risk assets.
Gold continued its recovery as investors moved toward defensive assets amid uncertainty, rising 1.5% to trade near $4,300 per ounce.
Crypto Derivatives Update
Futures sentiment turns neutral:
The crypto futures market’s long-short taker ratio returned to a balanced level after showing a bullish bias on Thursday, suggesting traders are becoming more cautious ahead of the U.S. jobs report.
CC token sees rising open interest despite decline:
Canton Network’s CC token dropped 13% over the past day, while futures open interest increased by more than 5%. The combination points to continued bearish momentum, especially as negative 24-hour open-interest-adjusted cumulative volume delta (CVD) indicates traders are aggressively opening short positions through market orders.
Open interest movements:
DOGE, XRP, and SUI recorded increases in futures open interest, while SHIB experienced a decline.
CVD remains bearish:
The cumulative volume delta indicator continues to signal selling pressure across the market, with most major cryptocurrencies showing negative CVD readings. ADA, HBAR, and ETH were among the exceptions.
Volatility remains subdued:
Bitcoin’s BVIV index, which measures 30-day implied annualized volatility, remains near its long-standing support level of 36%. Despite the delayed Clarity Act vote and the upcoming U.S. employment report, traders have not priced in a major volatility spike. Ether’s EVIV index is showing a similar lack of stress.
Options traders favor downside protection:
Data from Deribit showed BTC put options at the $60,000 and $62,000 strike prices dominated 24-hour trading volume, signaling demand for downside protection. For Ethereum, the $2,000 call option was the most actively traded contract.
Token Updates
Sui adds quantum-resistant security features
Sui has introduced quantum-resistant protections for user accounts by integrating two post-quantum signature algorithms approved by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), according to The Block.
The upgrade allows users to adopt quantum-safe cryptographic keys using their existing recovery phrases, eliminating the need to create new seed phrases or transfer assets to new wallets.
The security enhancement addresses a blockchain-specific risk known as “harvest-now, forge-later” attacks. Unlike traditional systems where attackers often need access to private keys before launching an attack, blockchain transactions expose public keys once accounts interact on-chain. Malicious actors could collect exposed keys today and attempt to exploit them in the future when quantum computers become capable of running Shor’s algorithm, which threatens current elliptic-curve cryptography.
Sui is deploying two separate security methods based on different risk profiles. ML-DSA-65 is designed for standard user accounts at the protocol level, while SLH-DSA-SHA2-128s, a hash-based signature system, is used within Move smart contracts for high-value applications. Using different cryptographic approaches reduces the risk that a single weakness could compromise the entire system.
The move follows a July event where an AI model weakened the effective security of another post-quantum cryptography candidate, reinforcing the need for stronger protection margins.
Sui described the upgrade as an example of “cryptographic agility,” allowing future signature technologies to be integrated without changing consensus rules or affecting existing balances.
The approach contrasts with Bitcoin and Ethereum, where adding quantum-resistant protections would likely require more extensive network-level changes. The development also comes as major Bitcoin participants, including Strategy and BlackRock, explore ways to prepare for future quantum threats.
SUI was trading around [X], according to CoinDesk data.
