New York, Jan 10, 2026, 12:44 EST — Market closed
- Bitcoin slipped roughly 0.6% to hover near $90,500 over the weekend, staying close to the $90,000 threshold
- U.S.-listed spot bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows again on Friday, extending the heavy withdrawals from the previous day
- Traders are gearing up for key dates: U.S. inflation figures drop on Jan. 13, followed by the Federal Reserve’s meeting set for Jan. 27-28
Bitcoin dipped closer to $90,000 on Saturday, continuing a volatile retreat following two days of heavy outflows from U.S.-listed spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds, a crucial indicator of institutional appetite.
The moves matter as crypto enters a fresh week facing both a macro challenge and a positioning hurdle. Investors have been quick to withdraw cash from bitcoin funds, even while interest-rate traders weigh U.S. labor data that bolstered bets on the Fed maintaining a cautious stance on further cuts.
Bitcoin last checked in at $90,542, slipping roughly 0.6% from its previous close, with intraday moves ranging from $90,113 to $91,422. Ether dipped 0.4% to $3,092, and XRP dropped 0.5% to $2.09. Friday’s regular U.S. trading saw bitcoin-related stocks take a hit: Coinbase lost 1.9%, Strategy fell 5.8%, and miner Marathon Digital slid 2.0%, while BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF declined 0.7%.
Data from Farside Investors revealed U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs—those holding actual bitcoin instead of futures—saw a net outflow of $250 million on Jan. 9, following a $398.8 million net outflow on Jan. 8. BlackRock’s IBIT fund alone registered a $252.0 million outflow on Friday, the figures showed. (Farside)
U.S. employers posted 50,000 new jobs in December, falling short of the 60,000 expected. The unemployment rate eased slightly to 4.4% from a revised 4.5% in November. Meanwhile, average hourly earnings climbed 3.8% year-on-year, signaling inflation isn’t letting up. (Reuters)
Fed watchers grew increasingly cautious about when the central bank might act next. Traders now expect rates to stay steady through mid-year. Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin told reporters the “low-hire environment continues,” while Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said inflation remains “too high.” Evercore ISI vice chairman Krishna Guha noted the Fed is more likely than not to hold rates until June. (Reuters)
Risk assets reacted differently to the jobs report. U.S. stocks ended Friday at record highs, while longer-dated Treasury yields dropped. This highlights a market still betting on easier policy moves later in 2026, even if rate cuts get delayed. (Reuters)
Bitcoin’s battle is straightforward: falling yields tend to boost non-yielding assets, yet ongoing outflows from spot ETFs often overshadow that boost. Traders keep circling the $90,000 mark, and since it’s within reach, even minor shifts can send high-beta crypto stocks swinging sharply.
The downside is clear. Another wave of ETF outflows or a hotter-than-expected inflation report pushing rate-cut expectations further into the future could drag bitcoin below $90,000. That would hit miners and leveraged crypto proxies even harder than the token itself.
Tuesday’s U.S. consumer price index for December is the next key event, with the Fed’s Jan. 27-28 policy meeting coming up later this month. Both could shift rate expectations and reshape appetite for crypto risk heading into the next U.S. session. (Reuters)
