Trump Pauses Iran Strike After Gulf Request; Bitcoin Nears $77K

President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social late May 18 that he had paused a scheduled U.S. strike on Iran at the request of the Emir of Qatar, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed. The post led to an immediate market reaction.

Trump wrote the Gulf leaders asked for a delay to allow space for negotiations and that any agreement must rule out a nuclear-armed Iran. He repeated an earlier warning to Tehran that “the clock is ticking.”

Trump said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Daniel Caine would keep U.S. forces ready for a full assault if talks collapse.

Markets moved within minutes of the post. Spot bitcoin reclaimed levels above $77,000, rising about 0.8% in the hour after the announcement while remaining roughly 2% lower over 24 hours. The S&P 500 edged up 0.10% to top 7,400 and the Nasdaq 100 rose from about 28,740 to 28,980 in the same window. Spot gold increased 0.10% to $4,560.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs had recorded more than $1 billion in weekly outflows heading into the announcement, ending a six-week inflow streak. Traders had positioned for a hot-war scenario after Trump’s earlier warning; roughly $580 million in bitcoin long positions were liquidated within a four-hour period over the weekend.

Analysts drew comparisons to early trading around the Ukraine invasion, when bitcoin initially fell and then recovered. Market participants said the next test will be a formal response from Tehran to the framework outlined by the Gulf mediators.

Any formal reply from Iran and any further posts from Trump are likely to drive volatility in the next 24 hours.