New York, Jan 16, 2026, 06:13 EST — Premarket
- Bitcoin slipped roughly 1.4% to near $95,300, retreating from its earlier peak.
- Traders digested renewed U.S. policy uncertainty following a Senate committee’s decision to put the crypto bill on hold.
- Investors are closely tracking if ETF demand will continue to counterbalance the pressure from tightening rate expectations.
Bitcoin dipped 1.4% to $95,332 early Friday, retreating from an intraday peak of $97,096 as U.S. markets opened. Ether dropped 1.7%, landing at $3,299.96.
This move is significant since bitcoin’s recent surge has relied heavily on two volatile factors: Washington headlines and U.S. interest rates. If either shifts, momentum traders often pull back swiftly.
In Washington, a U.S. Senate panel delayed debate on a broad crypto market-structure bill after Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said his company couldn’t support the draft, citing “too many issues.” Armstrong stated, “We’d rather have no bill than a bad bill.” Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott responded that “everyone remains at the table working in good faith.” 1
Flows continued to hold strong. U.S.-listed spot bitcoin ETFs, which directly hold bitcoin, saw net inflows of $840.6 million on Jan. 14 and $753.8 million on Jan. 13, then tapered off to $100.2 million on Jan. 15, according to data from Farside Investors. 2
That surge in demand drove bitcoin up to a two-month peak just under $98,000 earlier this week, before it slid back to around the mid-$95,000 range. 3
Macro factors aren’t helping bitcoin much. Asian stocks climbed on Friday as investors returned to big tech, but the dollar hovered close to a six-week peak. Strong U.S. data led traders to scale back expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts, pushing the next cut further into the future. 4
Technicians are watching closely to see if bitcoin can stay above the $95,000 mark. “If the $95,000 area is secured firmly, a renewed attempt at $100,000 is possible,” said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at IG Australia. 5
There’s a downside risk. Should talks in Washington drag out and U.S. yields continue climbing, bitcoin could fall below the $95,000 mark and tumble into another liquidation zone, particularly if liquidity dries up heading into the weekend.
Friday’s U.S. session will be key for tracking ETF flow data and Fed comments expected later. Eyes then shift to the central bank’s policy meeting set for Jan. 27-28. 6
