Crypto prices retreat on Iran strikes as US opens mortgage path
Bitcoin and ethereum slipped as a six-day US air campaign in Iran pushed investors away from risk assets, even as Washington moved to let crypto be used for mortgages.
Bitcoin and ethereum dropped in early trading on Friday. The losses came as intensifying US military strikes against Iran triggered a broad retreat from risk-sensitive digital assets.
Bitcoin fell 1.4% to open at $63,788.52 before slipping further to $63,130.40 by 8:33 a.m. ET. Ethereum declined 2.8% to an opening price of $1,863.16, later dropping to $1,832.29. The pullback erased brief pushes above $65,000 for bitcoin and $1,900 for ethereum earlier in the week, resetting prices to levels seen just days prior.
The selloff mirrors a wider flight from risk driven by the sixth consecutive day of US airstrikes. The conflict has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping chokepoint, and sent oil prices climbing sharply. For digital assets, which often trade on risk appetite, the geopolitical uncertainty has halted recent momentum. Still, both tokens retain weekly gains, with ethereum up 6.8% over the past week compared to bitcoin's 0.9% rise.
These short-term price swings highlight a market caught between acute geopolitical risks and nascent structural changes in the US financial system. While traders react to Middle Eastern tensions, regulators are quietly laying the groundwork to integrate digital tokens into mainstream consumer finance.
In late June, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William J. Pulte ordered Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare to count cryptocurrency as a qualifying asset for mortgages. The directive aligns with President Trump's stated ambition to make the United States "the crypto capital of the world." Allowing government-sponsored enterprises to treat crypto as mortgage collateral would mark a fundamental shift in how the asset class is viewed by traditional lenders.
"I want people who own cryptocurrency to be able to buy homes like everyone else," Pulte said. "I believe cryptocurrency is an asset. I believe Americans should be able to use their crypto if they want to. It's time the housing system caught up."
For now, however, market prices reflect a painful year-long drawdown. Bitcoin remains down 46.3% from its October 2025 peak of $126,198.07, while ethereum has fallen 44.7% from its August 2025 high of $4,953.73. Until the geopolitical picture clarifies, policy shifts are unlikely to override the immediate pressure on risk assets.
