Crypto prices were supposed to be ripping higher today. Yesterday’s CLARITY Act vote cleared the Senate Banking Committee 15-9—a bipartisan win that sent Bitcoin to $82,000, XRP to $1.55, Solana to $93, and Ethereum near $2,300. 

However, by the early hours of today, the rally was gone. Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) slipped below $80,000 and dragged Ripple (CRYPTO: XRP), Solana (CRYPTO: SOL), and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) down with it. The bullish catalyst arrived, but it wasn’t enough to hold the gains for any of these cryptocurrencies. Here’s our review of what’s actually dragging the market down.

The CLARITY Act Passed Yesterday — So Why Is Crypto Down Today?

On paper, the CLARITY Act vote was the bullish catalyst crypto had been waiting for. The Senate Banking Committee cleared the bill 15-9 on Thursday. Democrats Ruben Gallego of Arizona and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland crossed over to join all 13 Republicans. 

However, within four hours, over $145 million in short positions got squeezed as the market priced a clean regulatory win. By Friday morning, the gains had unwound. Bitcoin slipped below $80,000, XRP rallied to $1.55 yesterday before dropping to $1.44 today, Solana fell 5.6% to $90, and Ethereum gave back 2.1% to $2,250.

The rally faded because Thursday’s vote was the easiest gate, not the finish line. The bill still needs 60 votes on the full Senate floor, then House reconciliation, then Trump’s signature. The market had priced the committee win, so the rally was short-lived. Traders who positioned themselves into the vote took profits as soon as it cleared. Without a fresh catalyst, the selling fed on itself through Thursday night and into Friday.

$2.6 Billion in Crypto Options Expire Today—and Max Pain Is Below Spot

$2.6 billion in Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Solana options expired today on Deribit, and the timing was brutal. Nearly 25,000 Bitcoin options worth more than $2 billion settled at 8:00 UTC. Ethereum added another $622 million, Solana $17 million, and XRP $2.55 million. 

Options expiries always rattle prices because traders unwind hedges in the hours before settlement. And today’s expiry came at the worst possible moment—the CLARITY Act’s rally faded overnight, Treasury yields hit 12-month highs this morning, and Kevin Warsh took over the Fed. Bitcoin’s implied volatility was falling while the 25-delta skew rose heading into the expiry, and both signals pointed to traders bracing for a drop..

The max pain price—the level where most options contracts expire worthless—is below the current price for BTC, SOL, and XRP today. Bitcoin’s max pain is $80,000, with spot at about $80,772 going into expiry. Solana’s max pain is $86, with SOL trading near $91. XRP’s max pain is $1.46, with traders hedging downside. 

Ethereum traders are loading up on $2,100 puts for the May 29 expiry—what Deribit called “alarm bells.” When max pain is below spot, prices tend to drift lower as option sellers manage their books into settlement. The expiry passes after today, but the positioning underneath it doesn’t.

The Bond Market Already Repriced Warsh’s First Day

Kevin Warsh replaced Jerome Powell as Fed Chair this morning. Before he could say a word, the bond market repriced his entire mandate. The 30-year Treasury yield jumped to 5.114%—the highest since May 2025—while the 10-year hit 4.54%, also a 12-month high. 

Futures markets now price a 44% chance of a Fed rate hike by December. Markets had been pricing multiple rate cuts in 2026 as recently as April. After this week’s CPI at 3.8% and PPI at 6%, traders fully priced out any cut this year. The bond market is telling the Fed its current 3.50%-3.75% rate range is too loose given current inflation.

Rising Treasury yields are a direct headwind for non-yielding assets like Bitcoin. When 10-year yields climb above 4.5%, capital that might flow into Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, or Solana goes into Treasuries instead—where it earns a safe yield. 

Moreover, tokenized Treasuries have already crossed $8.7 billion in on-chain assets, a sign of capital rotating into yield-bearing products. The 2-year Treasury yield broke 4% this morning, trading above the Fed’s own rate range. That gap reflects that the market is pricing rates that need to go up, not down. 

Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at One Point BFG Wealth Partners, put it: “Long end rates are now in control of monetary policy. I wish Kevin Warsh the best … but he will still be subject to his surrounding macro circumstances.”

What Could Stop the Slide?

The CLARITY Act’s rally has faded. Options unwinds end after today, but the macro pressure doesn’t. For the slide to reverse, one of three things has to happen. The bond market needs to stop pricing rate hikes—which means cooler inflation data or an Iran de-escalation that pulls oil prices down. Or Warsh delivers a surprisingly dovish first public statement. Or institutional ETF flows flip back to inflows after this week’s $1.26 billion in outflows.

That said, there are three things to watch over the next two weeks. First, whether Bitcoin can reclaim the 200-day moving average at $82,455. Second, Warsh’s first public statement and the June 16-17 FOMC meeting. Third, whether BTC ETF flows flip back to inflows next week. The bullish catalyst arrived yesterday, but the next move depends on whether the macro environment gives institutions a reason to come back.