Bitcoin (BTC) Price: Senate CLARITY Act Vote Triggers Mixed Signals as Yields Surge

Key Takeaways

• Senate Banking Committee greenlit the CLARITY Act with a bipartisan 15–9 vote, igniting optimism across crypto communities.
• Sentiment analysis from Santiment reveals 1.55 bullish posts for every bearish one, though the firm cautions against following the crowd.
• BTC is currently trading between $79,000–$80,000, marking a 3% gain since early May but down approximately 23% year-over-year.
• The 10-year Treasury yield climbed above 4.55%, creating additional downward pressure on Bitcoin and other risk-sensitive assets.
• US spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced $290.4 million in net outflows on May 15, per CoinCentral data.

Bitcoin continues to trade in the vicinity of $80,000 as competing forces of regulatory advancement and macroeconomic challenges create a tug-of-war in the marketplace.

The primary catalyst driving market discussion this week centers on the Senate Banking Committee’s decision to move forward with the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act—commonly referred to as the CLARITY Act—by a 15–9 margin. The vote saw unanimous support from all 13 Republican committee members, with two Democrats crossing party lines. Nine Democrats opposed the measure.

Crypto analytics firm Santiment characterized the social media response as “a major spike of euphoria.” Their data indicates that optimistic Bitcoin commentary currently outpaces pessimistic takes by a ratio of 1.55 to 1.

White House crypto counsel Patrick Witt offered measured commentary on the development. Witt acknowledged the committee vote represented “a major step forward” while emphasizing that “there’s more work to be done before this legislation is ready for prime time.”

Santiment further suggested that passage of the legislation might attract institutional capital that has remained inactive due to regulatory ambiguity. However, the analytics platform cautioned that current cryptocurrency valuations may already reflect anticipated passage before official enactment occurs.

Rising Yields and ETF Withdrawals Create Headwinds

From a macroeconomic perspective, conditions remain challenging. Friday saw the 10-year US Treasury yield pierce 4.55%—marking its peak since May 2025. The 30-year bond yield reached 5.12%, a level unseen since June 2007.

As bond yields climbed, Bitcoin retreated below the $80,000 threshold during New York trading hours, tracking movements in US equity markets. The S&P 500 similarly surrendered gains accumulated earlier in the week. Bitcoin’s 24-hour price movement showed declines ranging from 2.43% to 2.68% depending on the data provider.

Investment vehicle data painted a bearish picture for May 15. Bitcoin ETFs registered $290.4 million in net withdrawals. Ethereum ETFs saw $65.7 million exit the funds, while Solana ETFs remained neutral with zero net movement.

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index recorded a reading of 31 on Saturday, placing market sentiment firmly in “Fear” territory.

Technical Analyst Maintains Bullish Outlook for New Highs

Bitcoin’s 200-day exponential moving average currently stands at $82,941, a technical threshold that has repeatedly resisted price advances during the recent rebound phase.

BTC continues trading approximately 30% beneath its October 2025 all-time peak. As of this writing, Bitcoin is changing hands around $79,084, representing a 3.15% increase since the beginning of May.

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