Financial markets saw a mixed session on Tuesday as bitcoin dipped below $66,000 and the Nasdaq composite lost more than 1%, while SpaceX continued its post-IPO surge on the back of a massive AI acquisition deal. The divergence in performance between traditional tech stocks and emerging sectors highlighted shifting investor priorities.

Bitcoin and Crypto Markets Under Pressure

Bitcoin pulled back to around $65,500 by the close of U.S. equity markets, down 1.5% over the past 24 hours. The cryptocurrency had opened with modest gains but failed to hold above $66,000 as selling pressure intensified in the afternoon session. The decline came despite a brief recovery from lows near $59,000 earlier this month, a 50% drawdown from Bitcoin's all-time high of $126,000 set in October 2025.

Long-term bitcoin holders (LTHs) showed remarkable discipline during the correction, realizing only $50 million to $100 million in profits per day, among the lowest levels in recent years. Their average cost basis sits at $49,413, meaning they remain comfortably in profit despite the pullback. This suggests that the current bearish sentiment is driven more by macroeconomic uncertainty and rotation into other assets than by panic selling from seasoned investors.

The largest decliners among crypto-related names were Bullish (BLSH) and Gemini (GEMI), each falling more than 8%. Meanwhile, ether, XRP, Solana, and Hyperliquid spot ETFs all recorded inflows on Monday, while bitcoin ETFs lost $64 million — almost entirely due to Grayscale's high-fee GBTC fund shedding $124 million. BlackRock's IBIT actually gained $66 million, indicating that the outflow was not broad-based.

SpaceX Soars on Cursor Acquisition

SpaceX (SPCX) continued its remarkable rally, closing higher by 4.8% at $201.80 after reaching an intraday high above $225 before giving back about 10% of the morning's gains. The stock has now surged 54% since its IPO debut at $135 on Friday, lifting the company's valuation above $2.7 trillion and surpassing Amazon's $2.6 trillion market cap.

The catalyst for Tuesday's move was the announcement of a $60 billion all-stock acquisition of Cursor, an AI coding platform founded by four MIT graduates in 2023. The deal marks one of the largest acquisitions in the artificial intelligence sector and combines Cursor's developer-focused software with SpaceX's massive AI computing infrastructure, including the Colossus supercomputer. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026.

Elon Musk's net worth has soared above $1.4 trillion, surpassing the entire market capitalization of bitcoin at $1.32 trillion. The juxtaposition highlights a stark divergence: SpaceX and AI-related assets are attracting capital that previously flowed into cryptocurrencies, as investors chase growth in emerging technology sectors.

Oil Tumbles on Iran Deal Progress

Oil prices suffered their steepest drop in months after The Wall Street Journal reported that a proposed U.S.-Iran deal would allow Tehran to immediately resume selling oil and fuel. WTI crude futures fell as much as 5.8% to below $76 a barrel, its lowest level since early March. Brent crude fell to $78 per barrel, down 3% on the day.

Goldman Sachs quickly lowered its oil price forecasts, now expecting Brent to average $80 per barrel in the fourth quarter of 2026, down from a previous estimate of $90. The investment bank cited the anticipated normalization of tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which prior to the Iran conflict accounted for roughly 20% of global oil flows. Lower oil prices could ease inflationary pressures and reduce the likelihood of aggressive interest rate hikes, potentially supporting risk assets including cryptocurrencies.

U.S. Housing Market Stumbles

Economic data painted a gloomy picture for the housing sector. May housing starts unexpectedly plunged 15.4% from April to an annualized pace of 1.177 million, well below the 1.43 million economists had forecast. The decline came despite a pullback in the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield from nearly 4.70% three weeks ago to around 4.43% on Tuesday.

The NAHB Housing Market Index also fell to 35 in June, down from an already weak 37 in April, indicating builder sentiment remains deeply negative. The surge in interest rates earlier this year appears to be taking a heavy toll on homebuilding activity, and with the Federal Reserve expected to hold rates steady this week, relief may not come soon.

Federal Reserve Meeting Dominates Sentiment

All eyes are on the Federal Reserve as it begins its two-day policy meeting, the first under new Chairman Kevin Warsh. Markets are pricing a zero probability of a rate change at this meeting, but the focus is on Warsh's post-meeting press conference. Polymarket traders are actively betting on specific phrases he might use, with a 95% chance he mentions "rate cut" and a 70% chance he talks about "artificial intelligence" or "AI." The term "inflation" is expected to be uttered at least 40 times, with a 45% probability of 40 or more mentions.

The central bank will also release updated economic projections, which could provide clues about the path of monetary policy for the remainder of 2026. Markets currently expect one or more rate hikes before year-end, though the oil price decline and housing weakness could temper hawkish rhetoric.

Other Notable Developments

Coinbase announced plans to launch tokenized U.S. stocks for international customers, joining Kraken and Robinhood in the growing market for onchain equities. The products will be backed by underlying shares and allow investors to receive dividends while trading and transferring the assets on blockchain networks.

Hyperliquid's native token HYPE surged to a fresh all-time high above $76, up 13% in 24 hours and nearly 200% year-to-date. Hyperliquid ETFs attracted $178 million in inflows since their debut, bucking the broader crypto ETF outflows. The platform is positioning itself as a financial juggernaut capable of trading all asset classes, from cryptocurrencies to commodities to private company shares.

The spread between Strategy's STRC and Strive's SATA perpetual preferred stocks widened to a record $5.78. SATA trades near its $100 par value with a 13% yield, while STRC lags at $94.15 with an 11.5% yield. Strategy will likely need to raise STRC's dividend rate to bring it back toward its target range, as its one-month volume-weighted average price sits at $97.07.

Robinhood announced a 10% workforce reduction, cutting 300 positions as part of a cost-cutting wave that has also hit Block and Coinbase. The company expects to incur approximately $20 million in restructuring charges, with the move aimed at maintaining a high-performance culture and accelerating product development.

The Bank of Japan raised its policy rate by 25 basis points to 1%, its highest level since 1995. Historically, BOJ tightening cycles have often coincided with or preceded U.S. recessions, a risk that traders are monitoring closely. Despite the hike, bitcoin managed to climb above $66,000 on the day as the central bank paused bond tapering, a move that could support risk assets.

Uniswap's UNI token surged 12% to $2.92 after Standard Chartered initiated coverage with a bullish $100 price target by end-2030, citing the expected explosion in tokenized assets on decentralized finance. The bank forecast the value of tokenized assets active in DeFi to grow 37-fold by 2030, with Uniswap uniquely positioned to capture that growth.

As markets digest a flood of cross-currents — from geopolitical oil shocks to AI megadeals to central bank policy shifts — the overarching theme remains the search for yield and growth in an increasingly fragmented landscape. Bitcoin's struggle to hold above $66,000 reflects both the weight of macro uncertainty and the gravitational pull of more exciting narratives elsewhere. The Fed's guidance later this week could be the catalyst that determines whether risk assets find a floor or resume their downward drift.

Source: Coindesk News