Bitcoin held around $66,000 with no major swings despite heightened tensions between the United States and Iran.

On July 22, blockchain media outlet Cointelegraph reported that bitcoin fell about 1 percent intraday. It held at elevated levels after earlier climbing to near $67,000, its highest in 5 weeks.

Cryptocurrencies and U.S. stocks were relatively steady despite worsening Middle East developments, following the previous day. Iran and the United States continued to exchange direct strikes, but risk assets broadly did not reflect it much. U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States would bomb bridges or power plants if Iran attacked ships in the Strait of Hormuz, but the market-wide shock from such remarks was limited.

Oil prices were the most sensitive assets on the day. U.S. West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude rose to $88.60 and $95.50, respectively, the highest since June 11. Middle East risks were directly reflected in the oil market, but had not yet spread into broad selling in bitcoin and stock markets.

In U.S. stocks, the upside momentum drew more attention. The market analysis account The Kobeissi Letter, citing Bloomberg data, pointed to S&P 500 short interest at about 3.7 percent of free float, near the highest level since 2010. Russell 3000 short interest was also about 6.1 percent, close to an all-time high. The Kobeissi Letter said this structure could lead to a short squeeze that pressures investors who bet late on a decline.

A near-term focus for the bitcoin market is whether it can break above $67,000. Bitcoin traded around the $66,000 level, and 24-hour trading volume exceeded $30.3 billion. Trader Daan Crypto Trades said that if it moves above $67,000, it could confirm a shift to a bullish structure on a daily basis, and a break of that level could lead to making higher highs.

Some traders also focused on bitcoin's relative strength index (RSI). Analyst Osemka said a strong bullish divergence is appearing in weekly moves comparing bitcoin and U.S. stocks, and assessed that the RSI is near a pre-breakout level. The view is that bitcoin could show relatively stronger moves than U.S. stocks, which are grouped as the same risk assets.

Still, the market's medium-term outlook remains mixed. Across the market, expectations persist that bitcoin's next bear-market low could come in the second half of this year or in early 2027. As a result, the key variables remain whether it breaks the $67,000 resistance in the short term rather than Middle East geopolitical risks, and whether bitcoin can sustain outperformance versus equities in the medium term.

Bearish bets on US stocks are surging: Short interest in the S&P 500 is up to about 3.7 percent of its free float, near the highest in data going back to 2010. Short interest in the Russell 3000 is up to about 6.1 percent, also near an all-time high. Both metrics have steadily increased since the... pic.twitter.com/6lP93Y4Ckd