Speaking at Ripple’s Swell conference on Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the power behind reserve currencies is shifting from military might to technology, and that the U.S. will “win in the digital asset stack,” which he expects to strengthen the dollar. He argued that stablecoins, more than 90% of which are backed by dollars, can open new markets in countries with weak currencies while creating fresh demand for Treasury debt. With Congress having failed to pass the Clarity Act, Bessent said Treasury can work with the SEC and CFTC on crypto rules and on guardrails against debanking — though agency action lacks the permanence of legislation.
Brazilian companies rushed into crypto on Sunday to protect their treasuries ahead of a runoff that Lula won, beating Flávio Bolsonaro, whom prediction markets had favored. Corporate accounts drove 78% of trading on exchange Mercado Bitcoin, where USDT volume jumped nearly 800% and bitcoin volume 865% from the previous Sunday. The hedging proved well-timed: on Monday the Ibovespa fell 14%, its worst day since March 2020, and the dollar gained more than 8% against the real, its biggest daily rise since 1999.
Galaxy says the bear market ended in June and bitcoin is now in the accumulation phase that has preceded every prior advance. Alex Thorn, the firm’s head of research, points to bitcoin holding above its 50-week moving average for five straight weekly closes, a 57% drop in asset managers’ net long CME futures positions from the record-high week, and 87,000 BTC added by spot ETFs since the June low. Bitcoin is around $80,000, up 38% from June but still about 35% below its record. Galaxy flags a weekly close below $76,540 that doesn’t recover within a month as the level that would challenge its view.
