Treasury Fills $6B Buyback Again, Bitcoin Stays Below $80K

A US Treasury buyback operation on Tuesday once again reached its $6 billion cap for 20- to 30-year bonds. Bitcoin (BTC) did not see the same rally as in August—it actually dropped below $80,000.

Traders who viewed buybacks as a yield catalyst found no such spark this time. The August surge followed an unexpected policy change, whereas Tuesday's move had been on Treasury's published calendar for weeks.

How Did August Differ From Tuesday?

On August 19, the Treasury announced it would double its long-dated buybacks to at least $4 billion per operation. That news caught markets off guard.

Bitcoin climbed roughly 7% that day, and the 30-year yield retreated from a 19-year high.

Tuesday offered no element of surprise. Newsquawk described these liquidity support operations as routine, aimed at helping dealers offload older, less liquid bonds. The size is designed to avoid moving yields, it added.

Dealers submitted $10.7 billion in offers, and Treasury accepted exactly $6 billion across six bonds. This was the fourth time the cap was fully hit, FXStreet reported.

Prices paid ranged from 52 to 71 cents per dollar, with a total cash outlay of roughly $3.8 billion.

Do Treasury Buybacks Still Affect Bitcoin?

Market reaction to later buyback operations has diminished. Bitcoin has fallen back below $80,000, according to CoinGecko data on Thursday, down 1.5% in 24 hours. While the timing appears connected, a direct link between the buyback and the price drop is hard to establish.

Yields have remained elevated since. The 10-year yield hit 5.342%, the highest since April 2002, after Treasury filled its cap on October 1, Yahoo reported.

The Federal Reserve's two-day meeting also coincided with Tuesday's operation. The central bank kept rates unchanged on Wednesday, NPR reported.

The expanded schedule runs through November 4, Chase noted. Fully filled caps have not clearly pushed long-term yields lower. The program may be viewed as routine plumbing rather than a signal for risk assets, though a larger size could change that perception.