On May 3, President Trump announced “Project Freedom,” a US military operation to escort civilian ships through the Strait of Hormuz starting May 4. The announcement triggered a broad risk-on move across stocks and crypto.
JUST IN: U.S. TO ESCORT SHIPS OUT OF STRAIT OF HORMUZ
Trump says the U.S. will launch “Project Freedom” to guide neutral ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz to safety starting Monday.
He called it a humanitarian effort, warning any interference would be met with force. pic.twitter.com/pdl89U126x
— Coin Bureau (@coinbureau) May 3, 2026
CENTCOM is deploying 15,000 troops, guided-missile destroyers, over 100 aircraft, and unmanned platforms. Trump also described diplomatic discussions with Iran as “very positive.”
Iran confirmed Sunday it had received a US response to its latest peace proposal. The offer was reportedly delivered through Pakistani intermediaries, suggesting active back-channel negotiations.
The news pushed oil prices lower. WTI and Brent both eased as the geopolitical risk premium compressed, freeing capital to rotate into equities and crypto.
US stock futures responded. Contracts linked to the S&P 500 rose 0.2%, Nasdaq 100 futures edged up 0.1%, and Dow futures gained 0.2%. This followed a strong Friday close where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both hit record highs.
The crypto market reacted more sharply. Total market cap climbed 1.88% to $2.63 trillion, a gain of $47.96 billion since Sunday’s close.
Bitcoin broke above $80,000 on a 2.29% session gain. Analysts Tom Lee and Raoul Pal both noted that short positioning had reached levels typically seen near market bottoms, with Lee describing the recent dip as a “hidden bear phase” tied to liquidity withdrawal.
Zcash was the standout performer in the top 100, rising 10% over 24 hours after breaking past a multi-month resistance level on its chart.
The total crypto market cap has been trading inside an ascending channel since February 24. It is now testing the upper boundary at $2.65 trillion. A daily close above that level would technically target the 200-day moving average at $2.81 trillion.
The 50-day moving average crossed above the 100-day moving average in early May, a technical signal that often precedes further upside.
Not all crypto news was positive. Ethereum’s validator exit queue surged 72,000% to 433,158 ETH. The spike followed $625 million in DeFi exploits in April, including a $292 million breach of KelpDAO’s bridge, attributed to North Korea’s Lazarus Group.
Despite the exits, the Ethereum entry queue still holds 3.6 million ETH, seven times larger than the exit queue.
If the crypto market fails to close above $2.65 trillion, the next support levels sit at $2.56 trillion and $2.49 trillion based on Fibonacci levels.
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