Bitcoin tops $73,000 as ETF inflows point to 'geopolitical crisis hedge'
Bitcoin tops $73,000 as ETF inflows point to 'geopolitical crisis hedge'
Ines FerréWed, March 4, 2026 at 5:53 PM UTC
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Bitcoin (BTC-USD) rose 8% on Wednesday, with strategists pointing to the token’s resilience amid market volatility tied to the Middle East conflict. President Trump also urged crypto-related legislation to advance in Washington in a social media post on Tuesday.
The token climbed to a one-month high above $73,000 as more than $680 million flowed into spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on Monday and Tuesday. The broader markets lagged on concerns that oil price spikes tied to the Iran war could reignite inflation.
"These ETF flows suggest this isn’t just a short squeeze," said Nic Puckrin, co-founder of Coin Bureau.
"They point to institutional allocators treating bitcoin as a geopolitical crisis hedge, or potentially even as a hedge against future inflation."
Read more: How to navigate a crypto meltdown
Bitcoin is up 11% over the past five days. The token initially dropped to around $63,000 following US-Israel strikes on Iran but recovered later that same day. Ether (ETH-USD) has also rallied 11% over the past five days, trading near $2,150.
"Crypto’s continued relative strength amid equity weakness and rising volatility keeps the prospect of a near-term rally firmly on the table," said Sean Farrell, head of digital assets at Fundstrat.
Farrell also cited President Trump’s recent social media post calling on banks to negotiate with the crypto industry over the Clarity Act, a bill aimed at establishing federal oversight over different parts of the industry.
At issue is whether crypto platforms should be allowed to pay customers “yield,” or interest, on their stablecoin balances.
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"The Banks are hitting record profits, and we are not going to allow them to undermine our powerful Crypto Agenda that will end up going to China, and other Countries if we don’t get The Clarity Act taken care of,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
If negotiations move forward, strategists say it could serve as a positive catalyst for the industry.
"[Trump's] comments suggest the administration may be less aligned with banking-sector opposition to stablecoin yield pass-through than previously assumed," Farrell wrote.
Still, bitcoin remains down 16% year to date after notching a fifth consecutive monthly loss in February. The cryptocurrency has struggled to regain its footing since tumbling from an all-time high of $126,000 in October.
Wall Street has lowered year-end forecasts, with even the most bullish analysts warning that prices could fall further before rebounding in the second half of the year.
“This is likely a rally to rent rather than own, but the tape continues to behave constructively for tactical longs,” Farrell wrote Tuesday night.
Crypto prices have remained resilient amid the Middle East conflict. Photo by: STRF/STAR MAX/IPx 2021 4/23/21 (STRF/STAR MAX/IPx)
Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @ines_ferre.
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