The recent US military action against Iran increased worries around the world and made investors nervous. However, Matt Hougan, CIO at Bitwise, pointed out that it also demonstrated the significance of cryptocurrencies and blockchain-based markets.
Since traditional stock markets were closed, cryptocurrency markets became the main place to determine asset prices worldwide.
US Strike on Iran Exposed a Structural Gap That Only Crypto Markets Could Fill
In a recent memo, Hougan highlighted a significant event: President Trump’s announcement of a military strike on Iran at 2:30 a.m. Eastern Time on a Sunday. This happened while global markets – including stock, futures, and foreign exchange exchanges in Europe and Asia – were closed for the weekend.
Only a few small markets in Saudi Arabia and Qatar continued to operate traditionally. According to Hougan, markets built using blockchain technology were the only ones that reacted instantly. This filled a critical gap created by the shutdown of traditional exchanges.
Historically, when a significant global event occurred, investors would wait until U.S. futures markets opened at 6 p.m. Eastern on Sunday to gauge the impact. However, as demonstrated this weekend, they now have another option: cryptocurrency markets, which are open for trading around the clock, worldwide. And many investors took advantage of this this weekend.
BeInCrypto noted that the crypto market immediately reacted to the attacks, with the price of Bitcoin (BTC) falling. Hougan observed that for much of that Sunday, the world’s financial attention was focused on activity happening directly on the blockchain.
Hyperliquid, a platform for trading perpetual contracts, recently gained attention. Its HIP-3 decentralized exchange enables traders to buy and sell synthetic perpetual futures linked to assets like stocks and commodities.
According to BeInCrypto, interest in HIP-3 surpassed $1 billion. DeFiLlama data also shows the platform experienced over $11.5 billion in trading activity over the weekend.
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It’s the weekend and things are happening, most traditional exchanges are closed, but Hyperliquid is still operating.
— Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) February 28, 2026
Tokenized gold also became very popular with investors. Tether’s XAUT saw over $300 million worth of trading in a single day as interest grew. At the same time, trading volume increased sharply on prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket.
The attacks on Sunday highlighted the fact that cryptocurrency markets are always open, and traders won’t soon forget that, according to Hougan. He noted it was the first time he could recall crypto markets being considered *the* primary market, overshadowing traditional markets.
The executive mentioned that, after this weekend’s developments, he now expects it will take longer for the finance sector to adopt blockchain technology than he previously thought.
I initially believed that cryptocurrency markets would develop gradually, mainly serving those already familiar with crypto and people excluded from traditional finance for the next 5 to 10 years. However, recent events have led me to believe that a move towards financial systems built on blockchain technology is unavoidable and will happen much faster than expected.
According to Hougan’s research, investors like hedge funds and banks need to change their strategies to succeed in today’s fast-paced, worldwide markets.
For any investor – like hedge funds or banks – wanting to stay competitive in today’s market, adopting stablecoin wallets and learning to trade on platforms like Hyperliquid is now essential. Understanding assets like XAUT and tokenized stocks is also crucial, as competitors are already doing so.
The recent events involving US-Iran conflict highlighted a growing trend: financial markets are increasingly operating 24/7, and investors are taking notice. What was once a niche aspect of trading is now becoming standard practice.
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2026-03-04 11:13