Story perspectives

Treasury Doubles Bond Buybacks to at Least $4B

8/21/2026

Summary

Trump pushes crypto

U.S. Treasury doubled its long-dated bond buybacks, raising the program to at least $4 billion.
Bitcoin rose to $69,600 and Ethereum to $2,081 on August 19, 2026, each gaining over 8%.
More than $1.23 billion of Bitcoin short positions were liquidated within an hour, amplifying the rally.
President Donald Trump met crypto leaders at the White House and urged Congress to pass the CLARITY Act.

Summary

Thune Files Cloture

Senate Leader John Thune filed a cloture motion on August 8, setting a September 15 vote.
The motion needs 60 votes because Republicans have 53 seats, requiring at least seven Democratic votes.
The House approved the Clarity Act on July 17, 2025, by a 294-to-134 vote.
Senate Democrats raised July 2026 ethics concerns, demanding bans on officials profiting from crypto ventures.
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins called passing the Clarity Act the regulators’ top priority.

History

Historical Context

In December 2017 the Chicago Mercantile Exchange launched the first Bitcoin futures, giving institutions a regulated way to trade the asset. The move followed the CFTC’s 2015 ruling that cryptocurrencies are commodities and the CBOE’s daily settlement of futures that month, while Cambridge estimated 2.9–5.8 million users held wallets in 2017. The launch sparked ongoing regulatory scrutiny and set the stage for later spot-ETF approvals.

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Trump pushes crypto

U.S. Treasury doubled its long-dated bond buybacks, raising the program to at least $4 billion.
Bitcoin rose to $69,600 and Ethereum to $2,081 on August 19, 2026, each gaining over 8%.
More than $1.23 billion of Bitcoin short positions were liquidated within an hour, amplifying the rally.
President Donald Trump met crypto leaders at the White House and urged Congress to pass the CLARITY Act.

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