Crypto traders braced for a total wipeout this week but Bitcoin had other plans

Bitcoin’s price showed resilience this week, remaining close to $75,000 despite a Federal Reserve interest-rate increase and the U.S. Senate’s failure to advance the Clarity Act. Market participants had largely anticipated both events, and analysts say that pre-positioning in derivatives limited the size of the spot-market reaction once the cloture vote failed. The cloture result — reported as a 49-50 outcome — contributed to an immediate wave of forced liquidations, with roughly $571 million in long futures wiped out within 24 hours. Derivatives traders and market strategists described the market response as muted because few participants had bet on the bill’s passage. Jag Kooner, head of derivatives at Bitfinex, said the modest spot move reflected that there were “few positions to unwind,” while also noting the political outcome prolonged statutory uncertainty for the industry. The vote’s fallout briefly pressured U.S.-focused crypto firms: shares of Coinbase Global and stablecoin issuer Circle slid about 10% before recovering later in the week. Analysts argue the likely near-term path for bitcoin is consolidation rather than an immediate breakout. Ilya Kalchev of Nexo Dispatch framed the recent action as absorption of multiple shocks — the regulatory setback, a Fed hike and the liquidation event — and identified resistance levels around $77,950, $79,300 and $80,000, with $81,400 a further upside target. He warned that a drop below $75,000 would put the ongoing recovery at risk. Other market professionals offered mixed views: some, like Luke Davis, point to agency-level regulatory moves such as the SEC’s temporary conditional Innovation Exemption for tokenized U.S. stocks as evidence that rulemaking can proceed without new legislation; others, like Vineet Budki, said it was too soon to declare a market bottom. Industry figures also debated the broader implications. Matt Hougan of Bitwise said the U.S. still effectively has a pro-crypto regulatory window ahead and that the Clarity Act’s failure did not materially change bitcoin’s fundamentals, though he added the path forward could be bumpier. Overall, market-watchers say liquidity conditions and adoption cycles remain primary drivers for bitcoin’s trajectory while regulatory shifts are likely to occur through SEC and CFTC actions rather than a new statutory framework.