Bitcoin Surges Past $82K as Senate Clarity Act Advances 15-9, JPMorgan Cites Institutional Lead

Bitcoin surged past $82,000 on May 15, 2026, after the Senate Banking Committee's 15-9 vote advancing the Clarity Act, with $131.3M ETF inflows on May 14 and JPMorgan noting BTC's institutional dominance boosting sentiment despite a brief dip to $81,500. Starting from a May 8 drop below $80,400 amid fading Fed cut hopes and strong US jobs (115K added vs. 65K expected), BTC rallied on $2.44B weekly ETF inflows, US-Iran de-escalation (Brent to $97/bbl), and a May 12 short squeeze to $83K. It held above $80,800 versus hot April core CPI (+0.4% m/m), $1.5B Q1 miner sales, and $635M ETF outflows, reclaiming its $82,009 cycle high.