Bitcoin Slides Below $63K as Miners Bleed and CLARITY Act Advances

Bitcoin fell below $63,000 on Friday as risk assets sold off broadly, erasing the modest gains the market had posted earlier in the week. CoinDesk reported that crypto dropped across the board in holiday-thinned trading, with roughly 20% of miners now unprofitable and publicly traded mining firms selling more than 32,000 BTC in the first quarter of 2026 alone , more than they offloaded in all of 2025 combined , to cover operating costs.

Adding to the pressure, traders have been loading up on bearish options bets as low as $52,000, signaling that a meaningful portion of the market is hedging for further downside. The selloff has been characterized by analysts as a demand-driven correction rather than a structural breakdown, though the speed of recent moves has raised fresh questions about near-term stability.

CLARITY Act Cleared for Senate Floor Vote

On the legislative front, the CLARITY Act was formally placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar on June 1, making it eligible for a full Senate floor vote for the first time. The bill, which cleared the Senate Banking Committee 15-9 in May, would grant the CFTC exclusive jurisdiction over digital commodity spot markets while preserving SEC authority over investment contract assets. To become law it must still clear a 60-vote Senate threshold, be reconciled with a competing Senate Agriculture Committee version and the House-passed text, and be signed by the President.

California is adding its own deadline to the regulatory calendar: the state's Digital Financial Assets Law takes effect July 1, requiring any firm engaged in digital asset business activity with a California resident to obtain a license from the state's Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. With Genius Act implementing regulations also due July 18, the summer is shaping up as a pivotal compliance window for the industry.

On the institutional investment side, spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a historic 13-day outflow streak in early June, shedding $4.4B in net outflows before the streak broke on June 5. Hedge funds led the retreat, cutting positions by 31,400 BTC while brokerages reduced holdings by 18,800 BTC. Morgan Stanley closed its entire 8,300 BTC position, a move analysts linked to the launch of its own MSBT fund.

Not all institutions were sellers. JPMorgan Chase added 3,000 BTC, Wells Fargo grew its position by 4,000 BTC, and Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund Mubadala acquired 1,100 BTC during the same period. Cumulative inflows into U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs since their January 2024 launch have reached approximately $58.72B, underscoring that long-term institutional demand remains intact even as short-term capital rotates toward AI equities and other competing themes.