NEW YORK, Jan 15, 2026, 10:10 EST — Regular session
- Bitcoin slid roughly 0.5%, hovering around $95,964 after reaching $97,758 earlier
- Coinbase and Strategy shares dropped after the U.S. Senate delayed the crypto bill debate
- Traders focus on spot bitcoin ETF flows, the timing of the late-January markup, and the Fed’s meeting on Jan. 27-28
Bitcoin dipped under $96,000 Thursday, while U.S.-listed crypto stocks pulled back following a Senate delay on a key crypto bill that cooled this week’s momentum. Bitcoin dropped roughly 0.5% to $95,964 after reaching an intraday peak of $97,758. Coinbase Global fell around 3%, and Strategy lost close to 3%. Miners Marathon Digital and Riot Platforms also slid, with BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) trading down about 1.6%.
The sell-off hit because Washington was expected to edge closer to new crypto market rules this week. But the Senate Banking Committee delayed talks on draft legislation after Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the exchange couldn’t back the bill “in its current form.” He added: “We’d rather have no bill than a bad bill.” Committee chair Tim Scott insisted lawmakers and stakeholders remain “at the table working in good faith.” 1
Still, cash is flowing back into spot bitcoin ETFs, a crucial indicator of institutional interest. U.S.-listed bitcoin ETFs saw net inflows of $753.8 million on Jan. 13, then $840.6 million on Jan. 14. IBIT alone brought in $648.4 million on Wednesday, according to data from Farside Investors. 2
The broader bill, rolled out late Monday, seeks to clarify when a crypto token counts as a security versus a commodity, while boosting the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s oversight of spot crypto markets. It also clamps down on interest-like payments linked to dollar-pegged “stablecoins” — tokens meant to maintain a steady value — sparking a battle between crypto companies and the banking lobby. “Their demands to eliminate stablecoin rewards are designed to choke off consumer choice,” said Summer Mersinger, chief executive of the Blockchain Association. 3
Bitcoin’s rally earlier this week came on the back of a softer U.S. inflation report and renewed optimism around a market-structure bill gaining traction. Sean Farrell, Fundstrat’s head of digital asset strategy, said this momentum is likely to continue in the days ahead. LMAX Group strategist Joel Kruger pointed to regulatory progress as a boost for sentiment and highlighted bitcoin’s move past $95,000 as a key technical milestone. Investopedia noted the Senate delayed its markup of the bill until the last week of January. 4
Crypto-linked equities have mirrored the token’s moves, offering stock investors a way to bet on bitcoin without owning it outright. Strategy, which keeps bitcoin on its balance sheet, often swings more sharply than the coin itself. Exchanges like Coinbase typically fluctuate alongside shifts in trading volume and risk appetite.
But the policy setback underscored how much the trade still depends on politics and positioning. Without lawmakers closing the gaps on tokenized securities and stablecoin rewards, the bill risks stalling. That would leave the industry right where it began: stuck waiting on regulators, court battles, and scattered guidance.
Macro risks remain in play. U.S. consumer prices rose 0.3% in December, climbing 2.7% from a year earlier, while core inflation stood at 2.6% year on year, the Labor Department reported. The Fed is widely expected to hold rates steady in the 3.50%-3.75% range at its Jan. 27-28 meeting. Seema Shah of Principal Asset Management noted a “disinflationary trend is gradually taking shape,” with traders pricing in potential rate cuts later this year — a scenario that tends to support risk assets when it persists. 5
