Bitcoin Surges Above $64,000 as U.S. Inflation Data Shows Largest Monthly Decline Since 2020

Bitcoin surged past $64,000 to near $64,800 on July 15, 2026, following a larger-than-expected drop in U.S. headline inflation to 3.5% and core inflation to 2.6% in June. This cooling data caused the implied odds of a July Federal Reserve rate hike to collapse from 43% to 13%. The rally reversed a sharp geopolitical downturn on July 14, 2026, when President Donald Trump's formal war declaration against Iran and a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz had spiked oil prices by 10% and dragged Bitcoin down to $62,600.

Bitcoin price volatility

• ▪The price of Bitcoin had previously fallen toward $62,600 on July 14, 2026, amid escalating geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran.
• ▪Bitcoin climbed to near $64,800 on July 15, 2026, following a larger-than-expected slowdown in June U.S. inflation.

Iran war declaration impact

• ▪President Donald Trump formally declared war with Iran to the United States Congress on July 14, 2026, triggering a 60-day war clock.
• ▪The formal war declaration and naval blockade on Iranian shipping through the Strait of Hormuz caused global oil prices to jump approximately 10%.

Federal Reserve rate expectations

• ▪Implied market odds of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike in July 2026 collapsed from 43% to 13% following the release of the June inflation data.
• ▪June headline inflation in the United States slowed to 3.5% from 4.2% in May, while core inflation eased to 2.6% from 2.9%.

BIP 110 fork preparations

• ▪Bitcoin mining pool OCEAN upgraded its backend infrastructure to support a potential BIP 110 chain fork.
• ▪The BIP 110 upgrade allows miners to receive rewards on both resulting chains if a network split occurs over capping arbitrary data storage.

South Korean crypto rotation

• ▪The South Korean KOSPI index later rebounded by 8.2% on July 15, 2026, retaking its position as the world's best-performing major benchmark in 2026.
• ▪A sharp selloff and meltdown in South Korea's KOSPI index prompted local investors to rotate capital out of domestic stocks and into cryptocurrencies.