New York, January 26, 2026, 11:07 EST — Regular session
- Bitcoin edged lower after a sharp weekend dip, keeping traders focused on the $86,000 area.
- Strategy disclosed fresh bitcoin purchases in an SEC filing, but crypto-linked stocks stayed soft.
- Investors are watching the Federal Reserve this week as geopolitics push some money into havens.
Bitcoin fell 0.6% to $87,476 on Monday, after swinging between $86,126 and $88,654, while U.S.-listed crypto stocks also slipped in early trading. Coinbase fell 1.7% and Strategy dropped 1.6%, with bitcoin miners Marathon Digital down 4.3% and Riot Platforms off 3.1%.
The move comes as broader markets wrestle with a fresh bout of safe-haven demand that pushed gold above $5,100 an ounce, a reminder that risk appetite is still thin in pockets. “Gold prices continue to be supported by elevated geopolitical and economic uncertainty,” said Ryan McIntyre, president at Sprott Inc, as investors also look toward the Federal Reserve meeting this week. 1
Bitcoin’s weekend slide left it nursing losses into Monday even as it clawed back from a 2026 low just above $86,000, with trading desks pointing to muted demand. “Monday’s reprieve is more of a pause than a big bounce,” said Sean McNulty, APAC derivatives trading lead at FalconX, adding that flows looked light. Spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds — products that hold bitcoin and trade like shares — logged five straight days of outflows totalling $1.7 billion last week, data compiled by Bloomberg showed. 2
One supportive headline came from Strategy, which said it bought 2,932 bitcoin for $264.1 million between Jan. 20 and Jan. 25 at an average price of $90,061, lifting its holdings to 712,647 bitcoin. The company said the purchases were funded through its at-the-market share sale program, which allows it to sell stock into the market over time. 3
Still, traders have been dealing with the kind of forced selling that can turn a slide into a lurch. More than $1 billion worth of leveraged crypto positions were liquidated during recent turbulence, according to market data cited by Investing.com; liquidations are forced closures of leveraged bets that can amplify moves when prices jump or drop fast. 4
Regulatory news was mixed but leaned supportive at the margin: the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission agreed to dismiss its case against Winklevoss-founded Gemini over its crypto lending program, after investors recovered assets through the Genesis bankruptcy process, a filing showed. The SEC has shifted its approach to crypto enforcement under President Donald Trump, Reuters reported. 5
Some analysts said the bigger driver remains the macro tape, not one-off crypto headlines. Simon Peters of eToro said bitcoin was sliding “as general market sentiment remains cautious amid geopolitical tensions… fresh tariff threats… and macroeconomic uncertainty,” according to Finance Magnates. 6
But the near-term risk is straightforward: if bitcoin breaks convincingly below the mid-$80,000s, traders will be watching for another wave of liquidations and fresh ETF outflows, especially with volatility already running high across currencies and rates.
On the upside, buyers are looking for signs that ETF selling has eased and that spot demand is returning, not just corporate-treasury buying. Strategy’s steady accumulation can slow a slide at the margin, but it has not been enough to turn sentiment on its own.
The next big catalyst is the Fed’s policy decision and Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks later this week, with traders also watching daily U.S. spot bitcoin ETF flow data for a read on whether institutions are adding risk again.
