Cryptocurrencies moved higher during Monday’s U.S. trading hours, recovering from sharp overnight losses that had briefly pushed Bitcoin close to $65,000. The rebound came as oil prices gave up much of their earlier surge, easing pressure on global risk assets.
By midday, Bitcoin was trading just below $69,000, up roughly 2.5% over the past 24 hours. Ethereum also advanced, reclaiming the $2,000 level and posting a gain of around 4% during the same period.
Crypto-linked equities mostly traded higher as well. Shares of Circle Internet Financial, the issuer of the USD Coin stablecoin, climbed about 8% after global insurance broker Aon disclosed it had paid an insurance premium using stablecoins for the first time, including USD Coin.
Other companies tied to the digital asset sector also saw gains. MicroStrategy rose around 3% after announcing last week that it had purchased $1.28 billion worth of Bitcoin. Meanwhile, shares of crypto exchange Coinbase were slightly lower on the day.
The recovery in cryptocurrencies coincided with a sharp reversal in oil prices, which helped stabilize equity markets. The Nasdaq Composite moved from an early decline of roughly 2% to trade near flat levels during the session.
Earlier, West Texas Intermediate crude oil had surged nearly 30%, briefly touching $120 per barrel overnight before retreating to about $95, leaving it still up roughly 5% for the day.
The initial spike in oil followed a tense weekend marked by continuing conflict involving Iran, which raised concerns about potential disruptions to global energy supply.
Despite the turbulence in traditional markets, analysts say Bitcoin has shown notable resilience.
“Bitcoin has displayed surprising resilience despite the extreme volatility across traditional assets,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation. He added that bulls would likely gain confidence if the cryptocurrency manages to reclaim the $70,000 level and maintain it during any pullback.
Morrison also noted that ongoing uncertainty in financial markets and potential supply disruptions in the Middle East could drive some investors toward digital assets as an alternative to investments closely tied to oil prices.
Meanwhile, Ram Ahluwalia, chief executive of Lumida Wealth, said the stock market may soon reach a short-term bottom.
“We may see a local bottom sometime today and a rally during the week,” Ahluwalia said. However, he cautioned that any rebound could prove temporary, as broader market weakness may prevent the S&P 500 from returning to its record highs in the near future.
