NEW YORK, Jan 22, 2026, 13:55 EST — Regular session
- Bitcoin climbed roughly 1% yet couldn’t reclaim the $90,000 mark following recent ETF outflows
- Global bond swings drove macro volatility, leaving risk appetite on shaky ground
- Traders await fresh U.S. data and central bank decisions for the next market move
Bitcoin climbed 1.1% to $89,350 by 1:55 p.m. EST Thursday, bouncing between $88,243 and $90,281 as buyers made another run at breaking $90,000. Ether crept up 0.6%, trading near $2,941.
The bounce barely shifted the short-term outlook. Traders stayed cautious following heavy outflows from U.S.-listed spot bitcoin ETFs and a series of volatile sessions that have cast bitcoin as more of a risky tech play than a safe haven.
It’s significant now as macro markets have become volatile once more. A selloff in Japanese government bonds this week lifted borrowing costs and rattled global rates. Meanwhile, changing talk on Greenland and U.S. tariffs stirred fresh uncertainty for risk assets.
Japan’s Bank of Japan holds its policy meeting from Jan. 22-23, with a statement expected Friday. Traders remain on edge, monitoring yields and the yen closely for any ripple effects on global markets.
Corporate bitcoin buyers are still in the game, though the market hasn’t exactly embraced them as a solid safety net. Strategy snapped up roughly $2.13 billion in bitcoin over eight days. Analyst Nic Puckrin noted that ongoing purchases send a strong message — “stopping would be as much a signal to the market as purchasing more,” he said. Reuters
At Davos this week, SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci said he hopes to see bitcoin climb back to between $125,000 and $150,000, but warned that “it does whatever it wants,” underscoring how volatile the trade remains. Reuters
Some analysts pointed to positioning and leverage issues. Bitcoin’s inability to sustain gains above $90,000 sparked forced selling in the derivatives markets, making rallies fragile whenever major holders decided to reduce risk, MarketWatch reported.
“Bitcoin’s price movement mirrored the uptick in broader risk appetite but stayed cautious,” said Iliya Kalchev, analyst at Nexo Dispatch, to Investing.com, highlighting persistent resistance around $90,000. Investing.com
Expectations around U.S. interest rates are playing a role as well. Latest figures for the Fed’s favored inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, have strengthened the view that the central bank will hold rates steady at its Jan. 27-28 meeting, Barron’s reports.
The downside risk is right around the corner: should ETF withdrawals persist and bond yields continue rising, bitcoin might tumble back to this week’s lows, triggering another wave of liquidation selling — the kind that can quickly turn a small decline into a sharp plunge.
Traders are now turning their attention to the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting on Jan. 27-28, looking for clues on how long restrictive rates might stick around. Bitcoin, meanwhile, continues to wrestle with holding above $90,000.
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