Bitcoin surges above $68,000 amid muted stock market reaction to Iran war

At their worst levels, U.S. stock index futures had been down more than 2%, but equity markets are barely lower one hour into Monday's trading session.

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What to know:

• Bitcoin climbed to $68,600 in early U.S. trading on Monday.
• The gains came as U.S. stocks slumped far less than feared following the U.S. strikes against Iran over the weekend.
• Economic data released Monday showed the U.S. economy accelerating strongly in February.

Crypto prices are rebounding from their worst weekend levels in early U.S. trading on Monday alongside a sizable bounce in U.S. equity indices.

Roughly one hour into the session, the Nasdaq is down just 0.1% after futures at one point overnight had indicated a plunge of more than 2%. The S&P 500 and DJIA are also posting just very modest losses.

Gold remains higher by 2% and crude oil by 7%. The U.S. dollar index is having one of its strongest sessions in weeks, gaining 1%.

Bitcoin BTC$66.352,16 has moved up to $68,600, ahead 2.3% over the past 24 hours. Ether (ETH) is higher by 1.4%, with solana (SOL) and XRP (XRP) up similar amounts.

Crypto-related stocks are posting even larger gains, led by Circle's (CRCL) 12% advance. Strategy (MSTR) is higher by 6% and Galaxy Digital (GLXY) by 4.7%.

On the macro side, the ISM manufacturing PMI came in at 52.4, for February, marking another month of sector expansion and the first consecutive run of prints above 50 since the fourth quarter of 2022. This follows Friday’s Chicago Business Barometer, which rose to 57.7 in February 2026 from 54 previously and well above expectations of 52.8. The reading signals only the second expansion since November 2023 and reflects the strongest pace of US activity growth since May 2022.

Against the backdrop of conflict in the Middle East, reaccelerating manufacturing activity, hotter-than-expected PPI data last week, and higher oil prices driven by geopolitical tensions, a March rate cut now appears effectively off the table ahead of the Federal Reserve’s March 18 meeting.

Normally, that might be considered a headwind for crypto prices, but it's quite possible that markets had already priced in tighter than previously expected U.S. monetary policy.

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Strategy purchased more than $200 million in bitcoin last week

The latest purchase, funded through common and preferred stock sales, lifted total holdings to 720,737 coins valued at more than $47 billion.

Wat u moet weten:

• Strategy purchased 3,015 bitcoin last week for approximately $204.1 million.
• The company now holds 720,737 bitcoin acquired for about $54.77 billion.
• The average purchase price across all holdings stands at roughly $75,985 per coin.

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