S&P 500 Falls, Bitcoin Surges as Traders Await the Fed Minutes: What Next?

The S&P 500 closed down 0.52% on Monday while Bitcoin surged past $64,000, a sharp divergence just two days before the Federal Reserve releases its July meeting minutes.

Markets are now in a holding pattern, with every asset class waiting for a single document to set the direction. $BTC is going up.S&P 500 is going down.I like this.

pic.twitter.com/SKFo2k2POe— Ted (@TedPillows) August 17, 2026 Why S&P 500 Fell While Bitcoin Rallied Bitcoin moved in the opposite direction entirely. The token gained roughly 2%, climbing from the weekend’s close near $62,800 to $63,000, with a move toward levels above $64,000.

Capital rotation into alternative risk assets helps explain that strength. Traders also priced in the possibility that the minutes would lean dovish, or at least avoid an overtly hawkish tone. Bitcoin’s correlation with equities has stayed inconsistent throughout 2026.