WTI Crude Oil (USOIL) has surged to $75.47 as of March 4, 2026, gaining over 12% since the US-Israel-Iran conflict intensified. With Iraq slashing production by 1.5 million bpd and tankers facing extreme risks in the Strait of Hormuz, analysts are warning of a potential spike toward $140 if supply routes are fully blocked. Discover the technical breakout levels and the fundamental "perfect storm" driving today's energy market.

Bitwise chief investment officer Matt Hougan said a recent Israel-Iran flare-up showed how quickly capital can move into 24/7 on-chain markets such as Hyperliquid when traditional exchanges are closed. He noted that tokenized crude oil, gold and prediction markets saw heavy weekend activity and now expects traditional finance to adopt blockchain-based rails sooner than his previous five to 10 year timeline. Hougan added that investors seeking to stay competitive may need to use stablecoin wallets and crypto derivatives venues while the NYSE works on its own around-the-clock tokenization platform.

On Tuesday, Ark Invest led by Cathie Wood purchased about $4.09 million in Coinbase shares and roughly $12.06 million in Robinhood shares through its ETFs. The trades came as both COIN and HOOD declined alongside broader U.S. equity indices amid heightened geopolitical tensions.

Indiana Governor Mike Braun signed House Bill 1042 into law on March 3 after the measure cleared both chambers on Feb. 25, authorizing specific state retirement and savings plans to include at least one crypto investment product via a self-directed brokerage option. The law mandates that plan administrators provide access to crypto-linked offerings by July 1, 2027, while also prohibiting special state and local taxes or fees on lawful crypto payments and self-custodied assets.

On Tuesday, major U.S. equity benchmarks recovered from steep intraday declines, with the S&P 500 ending 0.9% lower after an earlier 2.5% plunge as conflict involving Iran and a spike in oil prices unnerved investors. Bitcoin traded around $68,000 after briefly touching $70,000 on Monday, while Brent crude surged above $87 per barrel and rate-cut expectations were pushed further out.

Australia could capture up to 24 billion Australian dollars ($17 billion) in yearly economic benefits from tokenized markets and digital assets if it advances regulation, according to a new report. The Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre projects that, without substantial changes, the country may realize only 1 billion Australian dollars ($710 million) in crypto-related gains by 2030. The report highlights regulatory uncertainty, coordination issues and limited scaling paths for pilots as key obstacles to unlocking this potential.

Hours after explosions were reported in Tehran, blockchain data showed crypto outflows from wallets tied to Nobitex, Iran's largest exchange, jumping about 700% and reaching millions of dollars within less than an hour. The spike, which followed reports of US and Israeli airstrikes, was short-lived as a roughly 99% drop in national internet connectivity sharply curtailed further transfers. Analytics firms indicated the move likely reflected short-term panic from users facing sanctions and banking limits rather than a coordinated large-scale capital shift.

Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan argued that the U.S. military strikes on Iran announced on a Sunday morning pushed crypto and onchain finance into a central role for global price discovery. He wrote that traditional markets were largely closed while crypto venues, tokenized gold, and prediction markets saw surging activity. Hougan now believes professional traders and institutions effectively have no choice but to adopt onchain finance tools.