Bitcoin Surges Past $80,000 as Trump’s Project Freedom Eases Strait of Hormuz Fears

Bitcoin climbed above $80,000 late Sunday, reaching its highest level since January 31 and reclaiming a price threshold that had capped every recovery attempt since November 2025. The largest cryptocurrency rose 2.6% over 24 hours to $80,150 as of 11:40 p.m. ET, according to The Block’s price page.

The rally coincided with President Trump’s announcement of “Project Freedom” on Truth Social, a U.S. military operation to escort neutral cargo ships stranded by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. Central Command said the effort would involve guided-missile destroyers, over 100 aircraft, and approximately 15,000 service members. Trump added that his representatives were having “very positive discussions” with Iran, though senior Iranian official Ebrahim Azizi warned that any U.S. interference in the strait would be considered a ceasefire violation.

This story is an excerpt from the Unchained Daily newsletter.

Oil prices dropped on the news, with Brent crude shedding as much as 2.4% at Monday’s open before settling around $108 per barrel, while WTI hovered near $102.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs have estimated that the Hormuz closure has reduced global daily oil production by 14.5 million barrels, making it the largest energy disruption since the 1970s.

The crypto move was driven in part by a technical short squeeze with more than $114 million in short positions getting liquidated in 24 hours, according to CoinGlass.

Nick Ruck, director of LVRG Research, said bitcoin’s push past $80,000 “breaks through a resistance zone that limited price action over the weekend” and “confirms buyer strength after the earlier pullback.” Dominick John of Zeus Research described the zone as “major” psychological resistance.

Institutional flows continued to provide a floor with sustained inflows into the U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs. These products recorded a fifth consecutive week of net inflows, totaling $153.87 million last week.

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust has consistently posted the largest daily net purchases among its peers, and Morgan Stanley’s MSBT ETF drew nearly $194 million in inflows during April alone. Ether gained 3.6% to $2,382 and XRP rose 2% to $1.41. Traders said they would be watching May 7 jobless claims data and further Iran negotiation headlines for signals on whether the rally can extend toward the $83,000 to $84,500 resistance cluster that sits just overhead.