Trump’s Project Freedom Eases Hormuz Tensions; Crypto Jumps

President Donald Trump announced Project Freedom on May 3 and said the operation would begin May 4 to escort neutral civilian ships through the Strait of Hormuz. He called diplomatic discussions with Iran “very positive.” U.S. Central Command deployed roughly 15,000 troops, guided-missile destroyers and more than 100 aircraft and unmanned platforms to the region and confirmed forces were moving to restore freedom of navigation.

Markets reacted after the announcement. Total crypto market capitalization rose 1.86% to about $2.63 trillion, adding roughly $47.96 billion since Sunday’s close. Bitcoin traded above $80,000, near $80,355, up about 2.29% for the session. West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude prices declined following the operational and diplomatic announcements.

Over 24 hours, liquidation tracking recorded about $285.5 million in short positions liquidated versus about $52.1 million in long liquidations, with roughly $160.2 million of the forced exits tied to Bitcoin. Between March 4 and May 4, Bitcoin’s price trended higher while daily trading volume trended lower.

On technical charts, the crypto market’s 50-day moving average crossed above the 100-day moving average in early May. A daily close above $2.65 trillion would reopen a path to the 200-day moving average near $2.81 trillion and an extension near $2.90 trillion. Immediate support levels sit near $2.56 trillion and $2.49 trillion.

Bitcoin’s near-term technical levels include $80,513 and $83,957 on the upside; a sustained close above $83,957 would target about $86,409. A break below $78,382 would expose support around $74,938.

Smaller-cap tokens also moved higher. Zcash rose about 10% to $421.78 and broke a multi-month neckline. Charts show a cup-and-handle pattern that began forming in late January; the handle consolidation started in April and first broke on April 24, with a subsequent retracement and renewed upside. Zcash requires a daily close above $433.18 with rising volume to keep upside projections to roughly $469 and $516; the pattern would weaken below about $299.65.

Ethereum’s validator exit queue increased to about 433,158 ETH after a series of April DeFi exploits estimated to have cost about $625 million, including a $292 million bridge breach at KelpDAO attributed to the Lazarus Group. The validator entry queue remained larger at about 3.6 million ETH, roughly seven times the size of the exit queue.

Market commentators offered differing descriptions of current price action. Tom Lee characterized parts of the market as having moved through a hidden bear phase tied to liquidity withdrawal. Raoul Pal described recent activity as consistent with a mid-cycle correction.

CENTCOM posted on social media: “Project Freedom begins today, May 4. US Central Command forces are moving to restore freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.” The operational confirmation and Trump’s diplomatic comment coincided with the shifts observed in oil, equities and crypto markets.