Bitcoin declined on Thursday but remained near recent highs as investors assessed the latest developments surrounding a draft of a major U.S. cryptocurrency regulation bill, while ongoing tensions in the Middle East continued to weigh on market sentiment.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency slipped 0.88 percent to $65,500 as of 12:09 GMT, remaining close to the five-week high reached earlier this week after rebounding sharply from its yearly lows.
Mideast tensions intensify
The broader cryptocurrency market posted modest gains on Thursday. However, the recovery in digital assets lost momentum as the conflict between the United States and Iran intensified, with both sides exchanging strikes for a twelfth straight day.
Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthi movement threatened to widen the conflict by opening a potential new front in the Red Sea.
Clarity Act awaits final Senate vote
In U.S. regulations, a revised draft of the Clarity Act was circulated in Washington on Wednesday, bringing lawmakers a step closer to a final Senate vote on the long-awaited cryptocurrency market structure legislation.
The updated proposal includes a provision prohibiting the U.S. president and other senior government officials from engaging in cryptocurrency-related conflicts of interest. The measure would remain in effect until 2029 and grants regulators one year to implement the new requirements.
The ethics provision follows discussions between Republican senators and President Donald Trump, with a White House official describing the agreement as the most comprehensive ethics framework introduced to date.
The compromise followed financial disclosures showing that President Donald Trump earned more than $1 billion from cryptocurrency-related interests last year, a figure that Democrats argued highlighted potential conflicts of interest involving the White House.
Read: Bitcoin holds near $66,000 as ETF inflows, U.S. crypto bill hopes support market
Draft retains Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act
The latest draft also retains the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, which would exempt blockchain developers that do not control customer assets from being classified as money transmitters. In addition, it introduces provisions covering federal preemption, provisional registration and commodity pool operators.
The Clarity Act is widely regarded as a landmark piece of legislation that aims to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for the U.S. cryptocurrency industry. However, progress on the bill has been slow over the past year due to disagreements among lawmakers, particularly over its approach to regulating stablecoins.
As Bitcoin declined, the broader cryptocurrency market traded in a narrow range on Thursday. Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market value, edged up 0.37 percent to $1,924.29, while XRP dipped 0.37 percent.
Solana and Cardano advanced 0.54 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively, while BNB eased 0.03 percent.
Among meme tokens, Dogecoin fell 0.07 percent, while the $TRUMP token climbed 0.98 percent.
