Bitcoin Breaks Above $70,000, Lifting Crypto Financial Stocks | WEEX TradFi Daily (August 20, 2026)

Opening Summary

1. Global markets were mixed on August 19, with major U.S. indexes edging higher after long-end Treasury yields retreated following larger Treasury buybacks.
2. Bitcoin briefly rose above $70,000 and lifted crypto-linked equities, while Ethereum also strengthened.
3. Positive Phase 3 melanoma vaccine data from Merck and Moderna supported a broad rally in healthcare and biotech.
4. Markets are also digesting the relatively hawkish Fed minutes, upcoming earnings from Alibaba and Walmart, and continued weakness in parts of the chip and storage complex.

1、Market Highlights

1）Bitcoin Tops $70,000 as Crypto Stocks Rally Broadly

Bitcoin briefly broke above $70,000, marking a new two-month high, while Ethereum also strengthened. The move lifted crypto-related equities across the board, with Strategy (MSTR), Coinbase (COIN), Circle (CRCL), and BitMine posting strong gains as risk appetite flowed back into digital-asset linked names.

The rally was mainly driven by the U.S. Treasury’s expanded long-bond buyback operations, which improved liquidity conditions, as well as growing expectations around a clearer exemption framework for crypto-asset issuance. Investors are now watching policy follow-through and the extent to which crypto price volatility continues to feed into related equities.

Watchlist: BTC, ETH, MSTR, COIN, CRCL
Spot: BTC / ETH / MSTRB / COINB / CRCLB
Futures: BTC / ETH / MSTR / COIN / CRCL

2）Merck (MRK) Vaccine Data Strengthens the Healthcare Trade

Merck (MRK) moved sharply higher after the company and Moderna reported positive Phase 3 results for their personalized mRNA melanoma vaccine used in combination with Keytruda. The data reinforced expectations for Merck’s leadership in oncology immunotherapy and supported a broader move higher across healthcare and biotech names, including Eli Lilly.

Investors are focusing on what the results could mean for Keytruda’s lifecycle management and future indication expansion. The next key catalyst will be fuller trial detail disclosure and subsequent regulatory dialogue.

Watchlist: MRK, LLY
Spot: MRKON / LLYON
Futures: LLY

3）SK Hynix (SKHY) Announces $28.6 Billion Buyback and Share Cancellation

SK Hynix announced a plan to repurchase and cancel roughly 40 trillion won of shares, equivalent to about $28.6 billion, while raising its shareholder return target to more than 50% of free cash flow. The move is intended to counter recent share-price weakness and strengthen shareholder value support.

Markets are now focused on the storage-cycle outlook, the durability of AI-related demand, and the pace of execution once the buyback begins on August 20. Memory pricing trends remain another critical variable for the stock.

Watchlist: SKHY
Spot: SKHYB
Futures: SKHY

4）Treasury Buyback Expansion Pulls Long-End Yields Lower

U.S. Treasury yields retreated after the Treasury said it would at least double the size of its 10- to 30-year liquidity-support buybacks to a minimum of $4 billion per operation. The 30-year yield eased to around 5.18%, helping relieve recent selling pressure in long bonds and offering valuation support to risk assets.

Investors are watching whether the enlarged buyback program has a durable impact on liquidity conditions and whether lower yields can extend support to high-valuation sectors such as technology.

Watchlist: TLT, IEF
Spot: TLTON
Futures: IEF

2、Today’s Preview

1）Fed Minutes Reinforce a Hawkish Policy Bias

The Fed minutes, released after the U.S. close on August 19, showed that several officials viewed further tightening as potentially necessary if inflation fails to decline. Markets will continue to assess how that hawkish tone may affect the future rate path and risk-asset valuations.

Watchlist: SPY, QQQ, IEF
Spot: SPYB / QQQB 
Futures: SPY / QQQ / IEF

2）Alibaba (BABA) Pre-Market Earnings Put E-Commerce and Cloud Growth in Focus

Investors will focus on Alibaba’s revenue and profit performance, contributions from cloud computing and AI-related businesses, the strength of domestic consumption recovery, and full-year management guidance. Particular attention will be paid to whether growth in e-commerce and cloud exceeds expectations and whether AI investment is translating into financial support.

Watchlist: BABA
Spot: BABAB
Futures: BABA

3）Walmart (WMT) Pre-Market Earnings to Test Consumer Resilience

Investors will watch comparable-store sales, e-commerce growth, gross margins, and the full-year outlook. The market will focus especially on signals of U.S. consumer resilience and inventory discipline as a read-through for the broader retail sector under a still-elevated rate environment.

Watchlist: WMT
Spot: WMTON
Futures: WMT

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