Bitcoin Holds Steady as US Strikes on Iran Rattle Stocks and Lift Oil

Bitcoin Holds Steady as US Strikes on Iran Rattle Stocks and Lift Oil

Mon, August 31, 2026 at 7:55 PM GMT+3 2 min read

Bitcoin is proving resilient at the start of the week, holding above $78,000 even as fresh U.S. military strikes on Iran drove oil prices higher and pushed equities into the red.

The largest cryptocurrency traded around $78,623 on Monday, down just 0.7% over 24 hours, according to CoinGecko, after dipping to an intraday low near $77,162. Despite the softer session, Bitcoin is on track to close August with a gain of more than 24%, its best month since 2017.

The steadiness stands out against a rough backdrop for other assets. The weekend brought the first U.S.-Iran exchange of strikes since late July, reviving fears over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and sending crude sharply higher.

West Texas Intermediate futures climbed 2.6% to around $85.60 a barrel. Stocks slid, with the S&P 500 off 0.5% at about 7,673 and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.4% near 26,289.

Iliya Kalchev, an analyst at Nexo Dispatch, framed Bitcoin's composure as the more telling story. Kalchev noted that a hawkish Federal Reserve and a live geopolitical escalation rarely hit risk assets in the same week, and argued that Bitcoin holding its ground against both at once is arguably a more meaningful signal than the August gain itself.

Kalchev pointed to derivatives data suggesting traders are repositioning rather than committing fresh capital, with 24-hour volume more than doubling to $183 billion while open interest stayed roughly flat.

Compounding the pressure is Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's hawkish Jackson Hole address, which pushed September rate-hike odds to around 58% from roughly 35% before he spoke. Even gold pulled back, slipping to near $4,440 as the firmer rate outlook outweighed its usual safe-haven appeal.

The session caps a strong but choppy stretch for crypto. Bitcoin's August rally stalled late last week amid Warsh's remarks, while spot Bitcoin ETFs snapped a nine-day inflow streak even as Ethereum funds kept drawing cash. Ethereum traded near $2,448 on Monday, down slightly but heading into month-end with a gain approaching 30%.

Attention now turns to Friday's U.S. jobs report and the August CPI reading due September 11.