Washington finally blinked. The ethics dispute that has kept the CLARITY Act — the US bill that would settle who regulates what in crypto — bottled up in the Senate is reportedly resolved, and the market noticed: Bitcoin tagged a one-month high near US$66,900 overnight before easing back.
As of early Thursday morning AEST, BTC is sitting at A$94,287 (US$66,006), down about 0.9% over 24 hours after that pop, while ETH is at A$2,773 (US$1,941), up 0.6%. Prices via Yahoo Finance/CoinMarketCap, cross-checked against USD feeds.
The stories that matter
1. CLARITY Act: the logjam breaks. After weeks of stalled talks, Yahoo Finance reports the ethics-provision disagreement has been resolved, meaning the bill could pass before the Senate’s 7 August recess. The seven-Democrat maths still has to work, and no floor time has been locked in yet. Why it matters here: the world’s biggest market writing clear crypto rules sets the template Treasury and ASIC are watching as our own Digital Assets Framework licensing transition runs to 30 September.
2. ETF money keeps flowing — six days straight. US spot Bitcoin ETFs have now posted six consecutive days of net inflows, roughly US$727 million over five sessions — the longest streak since early May — with ETH ETFs adding about US$37 million on Tuesday. The institutional bid is warming up, though inflows remain well short of the money that walked out earlier this month. A thaw, still not a heatwave.
3. Ethereum‘s ugly record — with a twist. ETH has now closed three consecutive red quarters for the first time ever — down 28%, 29% and 25% across Q4 2025 to Q2 2026. The twist: ETH is up about 13% over the past month and ETF demand is creeping back. For Aussie holders sitting on losses from that stretch, remember capital losses only crystallise when you dispose of the asset — how that plays into your tax position is a conversation for your accountant, not a crypto blog.
4. Oil, gold and the safety trade. WTI crude topped US$85 for the first time since June as the US–Iran conflict grinds on, and gold jumped over 2% to around US$4,170. Interestingly, Bitcoin is getting lumped in with the hedges — money is rotating into BTC over altcoins, with Bitcoin dominance around 56%. For Australians, oil-driven inflation pressure is also AUD pressure, which is part of why the local BTC price has held up better than the USD chart suggests.
5. AUSTRAC deadline: six days. A local housekeeping note — AUSTRAC’s virtual asset service provider registration window closes Wednesday 29 July, and the Travel Rule has been live since 1 July with no minimum threshold. If you use a smaller local platform, it’s worth checking it’s registered. And expect more ID prompts when you move coins between exchanges and wallets — that’s the rule working, not your exchange being nosy.
What to watch
The ECB rate decision lands tonight AEST. OCC comments on GENIUS Act AML rules close Friday 24 July, and CFTC submissions on 24/7 trading close Monday 27 July. CLARITY has two Senate floor windows left before the recess. And FTX’s fifth creditor distribution (~US$900M) starts 31 July — if you’re owed money, go directly to the official portal and treat every "claims help" email as phishing until proven otherwise.
If the ETF flows and regulatory thaw have you thinking about finally setting up a proper exchange account, our guide to Australian crypto exchanges compares the local options — CoinSpot remains our pick for most beginners.
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