LIVE: Why Bitcoin and stocks are rallying today

Crypto projects built around exchanges and bringing traditional assets onchain are seeing some of the market’s biggest gains, as U.S. regulators keep moving forward with digital-asset initiatives even though a major crypto bill stalled in Congress.

Hyperliquid’s HYPE reached a new peak of $96 on Monday, pushing the token’s total valuation beyond $20 billion.

Elsewhere, Uniswap’s UNI has jumped around 40% over the past seven days, Avalanche’s AVAX has added roughly 47%, Ethena’s ENA has climbed about 50%, and Ondo’s ONDO is up close to 26%.

The moves followed a decision from the Securities and Exchange Commission last week that gives eligible platforms a five-year exemption to offer tokenized U.S. equities directly onchain.

That regulatory step arrived only days after the Clarity Act came up short in the Senate. With Congress yet to deliver the legislation, federal agencies are continuing with pieces of Washington’s digital-asset policy through existing regulatory powers.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is moving ahead with its own crypto initiatives as well.

So far, the buying has mainly favored projects connected to the plumbing behind crypto markets rather than lifting smaller tokens across the board.

That makes the move different from the broad rallies usually seen during an altcoin boom. Bitcoin, meanwhile, traded above $86,000, its highest level in eight months.

Hyperliquid has stood out within that group. Open positions on its decentralized derivatives platform have reached $8.3 billion, based on hl.eco figures. Activity in perpetual contracts tracking traditional financial assets has also grown significantly during 2026.

Away from crypto, Washington is preparing another round of economic pressure on Tehran. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iranian airlines will effectively be cut off internationally beginning Sept. 23.

Scott told reporters that companies dealing with Iranian carriers could lose access to the dollar-based financial system. He said aircraft would be denied things such as fuel, airport support and ticketing services when they arrive abroad if providers want to avoid U.S. penalties.

Scott said the U.S. is increasing financial pressure on Iran and going after businesses and institutions that help Tehran maintain access to the global economy, including banks.

The Treasury Department expanded that campaign last week by placing fresh sanctions on Russia’s state-controlled VTB Bank.

The action is part of Washington’s attempt to squeeze Iran financially by targeting companies, banks and other partners that continue doing business with Tehran.

Wall Street finished Monday firmly in the green, with technology shares doing most of the heavy lifting. The S&P 500 advanced 1.49% to 7,764.70, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.26% to a record 27,122.09, giving the index its first all-time closing high since June. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 366.19 points, or 0.71%, to 52,048.83.

AI-related companies were among the strongest names on the board. Intel (INTC) surged 12%, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) climbed roughly 10%, and AMD’s valuation crossed $1 trillion. Qualcomm (QCOM) gained more than 9%.

Monday’s rebound came after a much weaker stretch for U.S. equities. Over the previous week, the Dow dropped 1.7%, marking its poorest weekly showing since March. The S&P 500 lost around 0.1%, while the Nasdaq moved the other way with a 0.7% gain.

Crypto-exposed equities were mostly higher as Bitcoin’s rally spilled into listed companies tied to digital assets.

Robinhood Markets (HOOD) rose 2.90% to $123.30, MercadoLibre (MELI) added 1.85% to $1,820.47, Strategy (MSTR) jumped 9.47% to $168.50, and Coinbase Global (COIN) advanced 3.50% to $201.05.

Block (XYZ) gained 2.14% to $77.91, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) edged up 0.40% to $52.62, and Circle Internet Group (CRCL) increased 2.95% to $94.49. Net Holding (NTHOL) slipped 0.78% to $38.30, while Nexon (NEXOY) added 0.34% to $20.39 and IREN (IREN) rose 1.18% to $47.23.

BitMine Immersion Technologies (BMNR) climbed 8.70% to $28.25, Galaxy Digital Holdings (GLXY) gained 5.59% to $26.07, and Hut 8 (HUT) rose 4.74% to $103.42. GameStop (GME) added 0.53% to $22.76, while Figure Technology Solutions (FIGR) fell 0.56% to $35.29.

Neptune Digital Assets (NDA) surged 14.29% to $0.72. TeraWulf (WULF) added 2.59% to $17.45, Riot Platforms (RIOT) rose 1.81% to $24.18, Cipher Digital (CIFR) gained 3.05% to $18.90, and Core Scientific (CORZ) moved 2.06% higher to $18.36.

Bullish (BLSH) climbed 4.69% to $40.14, Rumble (RUM) gained 0.88% to $9.17, and MARA Holdings (MARA) edged up 0.30% to $13.28. Alliance Resource Partners (ARLP) dipped 0.27% to $25.80, while Bitdeer Technologies Group (BTDR) added 1.31% to $13.14 and CleanSpark (CLSK) rose 2.00% to $14.76.

Strive (ASST) gained 0.80% to $30.33, Greenidge Generation Holdings (GREE) jumped 9.74% to $2.14, and Securitize (SECZ) soared 24.31% to $13.50. Keel Infrastructure (KEEL) increased 1.50% to $4.07.

Metaplanet (MTPLF) climbed 8.93% to $1.83, SharpLink (SBET) advanced 6.74% to $9.98, and Twenty One Capital (XXI) jumped 13.77% to $6.61. American Bitcoin (ABTC) gained 1.98% to $10.30, while BitGo Holdings (BTGO) rose 3.97% to $7.86.

HIVE Digital Technologies (HIVE) added 2.05% to $3.48, Gemini Space Station (GEMI) gained 3.10% to $5.99, Forward Industries (FWDI) advanced 6.10% to $8.17, and Bit Digital (BTBT) climbed 5.20% to $1.82.

Meliuz (CASH3) fell 2.09% to $5.61, while Prenetics (PRE) gained 0.62% to $24.34 and ProCap Financial (BRR) jumped 8.24% to $4.07. Boyaa International (BOYAF) was unchanged at $0.38.

Canaan (CAN) surged 11.80% to $0.42, Exodus Movement (EXOD) jumped 18.42% to $8.10, and Kulr Technology Group (KULR) gained 2.11% to $2.42. Bitcoin Group SE (ADE) rose 5.45% to $29.40, Intchains Group (ICG) added 0.54% to $0.93, and Nano Labs (NA) advanced 5.86% to $2.35.

At the smaller end of the group, Sol Strategies (STKE) shot up 28.33% to $1.54, while Argo Blockchain (ARBK) dropped 5.09% to $2.61. Genius Group (GNS) gained 2.25% to $0.15, and Fold Holdings (FLD) finished 2.79% higher at $0.59.

President Donald Trump said Monday that U.S. authorities, including the Department of Justice, could intervene if artificial intelligence creates problems that require government action.

On Truth Social, Trump said his administration would keep an eye on the technology while allowing the industry to keep growing.

Trump has spent much of the past two weeks dismissing warnings around AI, repeatedly describing the threat as a hoax.

The comments come after Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon left the company and accused both Anthropic and OpenAI of taking unacceptable chances with a technology he believes could put lives at risk.

Jacob’s departure added to a wider debate over how quickly the biggest AI companies are developing increasingly powerful systems and how much oversight those systems should face.

Trump, however, continues to treat American leadership in AI as an economic and strategic priority. He said the U.S. is currently ahead of China and other countries and argued that Washington should not slow an industry he expects to become larger than either the Industrial Revolution or the internet.

Trump also said federal law enforcement could step in if necessary, while making clear that his broader policy remains supportive of both AI and superintelligence development.

The amount of money flowing into the sector is already climbing quickly. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said investment across major hyperscalers could reach $1 trillion next year.

Jamie said spending in that part of the industry has already climbed from roughly $300 billion last year to about $700 billion this year. He estimated that the buildout is contributing roughly 1 percentage point to GDP growth each year.

That money is going into hiring, new factories, electricity infrastructure, machinery and other materials, which Jamie said could also put some upward pressure on inflation in the near term.

Over a longer period, he said AI could instead help lower costs across the economy as the technology becomes more widely used. Jamie described the expansion as something that still appears to have plenty of room to run.

He also cautioned against trying to identify the eventual winners too early. Jamie pointed to the internet bubble, when several companies that once looked dominant disappeared while businesses that were barely known at the time later became some of the biggest names in technology.

On the question of whether all that AI spending will produce clear financial returns, Jamie said companies will not always be able to judge the investment through a simple return calculation. In some cases, he said, spending on the technology will simply be necessary to remain competitive.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is heading to New York on Tuesday with an Iranian delegation for the United Nations General Assembly, where Tehran’s conflict with the U.S. and Israel is expected to feature heavily in his appearance.

The UN’s general debate runs from Sept. 22 through Sept. 26 and resumes on Sept. 28.

Masoud is expected to lay out Iran’s view of current global issues before the assembly and also meet several foreign leaders while he is in New York.

His trip comes while Washington and Tehran remain at war, making any face-to-face diplomatic contact around the gathering closely watched.

Markets reacted positively on Monday to the possibility that the gathering could create another opening for negotiations. Stocks moved higher, crude prices came down and government bond yields dropped sharply as traders followed the latest diplomatic signals.

Tehran, however, has kept its conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian officials say Washington must first meet commitments tied to the June memorandum, including removing the naval blockade around Iranian ports, providing sanctions relief, releasing frozen Iranian funds and stopping military threats.

The June agreement was reached after Pakistan-hosted negotiations, although both sides later accused each other of breaching it.

Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf also made clear on Sunday that Tehran does not see military pressure and negotiations as separate choices.

Mohammad said Iran should continue fighting while also pursuing talks, with negotiations taking place when Tehran believes it is dealing from a stronger position.

Bitcoin rallied to $85,194 on Monday morning, putting it 5.4% higher over the past day and taking it well beyond the $82,284 level reached on Sept. 4.

Over the last 24 hours, roughly $746 million in crypto positions were wiped out, with $647.9 million coming from shorts.

The stress increased with the past few hours, with $159.9 million disappearing from the market between 08:30am to 09:30 am UTC time. Of this, about 95% had come from people taking positions expecting prices to fall.

Bitcoin alone had lost $277.5 million, and Ether had lost $122.8 million in short trades, based on Coinglass.

Even at this point, the traders continue buying more rather than exiting the market. The crypto total open interest increased by 7.59% to $156 billion. Meanwhile, the total trade volume over the last 24 hours has increased by 39% to $224 billion.

That matters because even as losing bearish bets are being closed, fresh positions are still coming in. Traders are basically replacing the leverage that is getting flushed out instead of moving to the sidelines.

The futures market is showing the same change in tone. The taker long-short ratio is now close to 53% on the bullish side, the first time in weeks that buyers have held that edge.

Bitcoin futures positioning has also picked up. Total open interest moved above 700,000 BTC for the first time in several weeks.

Meanwhile, oil fell again Monday for a fourth session in a row after President Donald Trump suggested talks with Iran were still possible.

Brent crude for November delivery dropped 2.6% to $101.17 a barrel by press time, while West Texas Intermediate for October delivery fell 2.5% to $97.78.

Donald Trump told Fox News that he would likely be willing to sit down with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during this week’s UN General Assembly.

So far, crude shipments out of the Middle East have continued without a major breakdown, even after Saudi Arabia closed its East-West pipeline following attacks.

Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 450 points, or 0.9%. S&P 500 futures added 0.7%, while Nasdaq-100 futures climbed 1%.

While that is happening, the Dow Jones fell 1.7% in the past week, its worst weekly performance since March. On the other hand, the S&P 500 fell slightly by 0.1%, while the Nasdaq gained 0.7%.

Bond yields moved down with crude. The 10-year Treasury yield fell by more than 3 basis points to 4.957%, while the 30-year yield dropped by a similar amount to 5.294%.

Investors are still dealing with stubborn inflation and expensive borrowing costs after the Federal Reserve increased rates last week for the first time in three years.