Oil Risk Premium Widens After US Strikes on Iranian Tankers, Bitcoin Falls

Oil rose and bitcoin fell after the United States struck Iranian crude carriers, according to CoinDesk, which put bitcoin's decline at nearly 1% as escalating U.S.-Iran hostilities pushed crude higher. Bitcoin later slipped below $80,000, with Investing.com citing both the oil surge and bets on a Federal Reserve rate hike as the drivers. A separate report cited by Investing.com said oil could climb as high as $120 a barrel if shipping risk in the Middle East continues to build, underscoring how directly geopolitical escalation is now feeding into both energy and crypto pricing. The link is straightforward: higher oil raises inflation expectations, which raises the odds the Fed holds rates higher for longer, which pressures risk assets including bitcoin. What remains unresolved is how far the U.S.-Iran confrontation goes. Traders are pricing a scenario where shipping through Middle East chokepoints gets disrupted further, but there is no confirmed blockade or sustained supply cut yet — the $120 figure is a risk scenario, not a settled forecast.