Bitcoin dips below $81,000 as oil climbs and SEC flags tokenization
Bitcoin briefly fell below $81,000 as Brent crude rose and stocks slipped, while the SEC named tokenization an exam risk and a senator probed Tether payments.
Live chart · BTCUSD, ETHUSD, BNBUSDT, ADAUSDT · TradingView
Bitcoin slipped back toward $81,000 in the US session and briefly traded below it, as stocks fell and oil prices climbed. Cointelegraph reports that Brent crude hit its highest level since March, leaving traders watching the 50-day moving average for support.
Since our midday recap, the story has shifted from ETF outflows to oil and a busy regulatory afternoon in Washington.
Bitcoin
Bitcoin traded at $81,073 at the time of writing, according to CoinGecko. That is down 0.28% over 24 hours and 1.1% over seven days. The 24-hour range ran from $80,548 to $81,939. Volume was about $24.1 billion.
Earlier on Friday, CoinDesk reported that Brent crude surged above $116 per barrel. Higher energy costs have weighed on risk assets all week, alongside AI-related worries in equities. Our sister site covered how that same selloff pushed the yen to a five-week high on haven flows.
Ether and the majors
Ether was flat on the day at $2,383.73 but down 2.23% on the week. BNB was the only major in the green over both windows. Cardano remained the weakest, down 7.51% in seven days.
| Coin | Price (USD) | 24h % | 7d % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ether (ETH) | 2,383.73 | 0.00 | -2.23 |
| BNB | 738.67 | +1.12 | +1.89 |
| XRP | 1.29 | -0.99 | -1.38 |
| Solana (SOL) | 102.75 | -0.68 | -1.96 |
| Dogecoin (DOGE) | 0.078573 | -0.05 | -3.18 |
| Cardano (ADA) | 0.210388 | -0.63 | -7.51 |
Breadth and sentiment
Total crypto market capitalisation stood at $2.728 trillion, down 3.07% over 24 hours, per CoinGecko. Bitcoin dominance was 59.5% and Ether dominance 10.6%.
The Crypto Fear & Greed Index read 50 (Neutral), unchanged from this morning's update. It had reached 68 (Greed) on Thursday and 63 the day before. Over the past eight days it has swung between 50 and 68, so today's reading is the low of that window.
News drivers
SEC puts tokenization on its 2027 exam list
Cointelegraph reports that the SEC's latest examination priorities highlight tokenization as an emerging market risk, while cryptocurrencies are absent as a standalone category. Decrypt adds that the Division of Examinations also named "super intelligence and other advanced technologies" as a focus area.
Tokenized stocks drew more pushback too. According to Cointelegraph, Wells Fargo and five other companies objected to listings on the OKX-ICE platform, bringing total objections to 22 as of Friday under the SEC's innovation exemption.
Senate probe into Tether
Decrypt reports that Sen. Richard Blumenthal demanded Tether's records on payments to Nxum, a firm co-owned by former White House crypto adviser Bo Hines. Cointelegraph notes the request went to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino.
Initia halts its chain after exploit
The Initia blockchain suspended its layer-1 network and rollups after an exploit that reportedly drained over $2.6 million, according to Cointelegraph. Researchers identified unauthorized token minting and assets moved to Ethereum.
Tax and politics
Cointelegraph, citing Forbes, says the IRS plans lower penalties and more flexible payment options for voluntary disclosures, including crypto. Separately, Decrypt reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked for a blockchain plan in case banks face sanctions.
What to watch next
- Bitcoin's 50-day moving average, which Cointelegraph flags as the level in focus after the dip below $81,000.
- Oil prices, with Brent at multi-month highs according to both Cointelegraph and CoinDesk.
- Israel's election, which Decrypt says is days away, and any follow-up on the blockchain plan.
- Tether's response to the Senate records request.
- OKX-ICE objections, which keep growing under the SEC's innovation exemption process.
- US midterms, which CoinDesk examines against past bitcoin cycle lows.
How we make this article: software gathers the market data and the news from the sources linked in the article, then cross-checks them. AI writes the text. People choose the sources, set the rules and run the process. Not investment advice.