Bitcoin (BTC) saw no bounce Friday, holding at session lows below $95,000 late in the U.S. day after a bruising week that dragged prices to their lowest since May.
The largest cryptocurrency is again underperforming U.S. stocks, with major U.S. indices holding onto minor gains a few minutes prior to the end of trading. BTC was on track to log a 9% loss for the week, its worts performance in eight months.
Ethereum (ETH), trading below $3,200, fared worse, tumbling more than 11% since Monday, while Solana’s SOL (SOL) lost 15% over the same period. XRP (XRP) held up better, dipping just 1%, perhaps buoyed by this week’s debut of its first spot ETF in the U.S., issued by Canary Capital.
Crypto-related equities performed mixed after Thursday’s steep losses. MicroStrategy (MSTR), the largest public holder of bitcoin, slid another 4% to below $200 for the first time since October 2024. Exchange Bullish (BLSH), Ethereum treasury BitMine (BMNR), miners CleanSpark (CLSK), MARA Holdings (MARA) and Hive Digital (HIVE) slid 4%-7%.
On the positive side, miner Hut 8 bounced 6% following earnings results from American Bitcoin, a joint venture with the Trump family, while digital brokerage Robinhood (HOOD) and BTC miner Riot Platforms (RIOT) advanced around 3%.
The current market downturn is largely driven by a lack of clarity on key U.S. economic conditions and subsequent monetary policy direction, Bitfinex analysts said. That data blackout was due to the longest U.S. government shutdown that lasted from October 1 until Thursday, that suspended government inflation and jobs data releases.
“The market retracement is the result of an information vacuum and political uncertainty,” they wrote in a Friday note shared with CoinDesk. “Key economic data is still missing to guide the market and the Federal Reserve, putting investors on standby.
However, the shutdown-ending spending bill that lawmakers passed only provides funding to keep the government open until 30 January, weighing on investor sentiment. “The temporary funding bill doesn’t resolve the uncertainty — it just pushes the issue further down the road.” Bitfinex analysts added.
Noelle Acheson, author of Crypto Is Macro Now, said the recent drawdown was a necessary correction after months of range-bound consolidation that failed to sustain a breakout above $120,000. “We need to get through this flush before we can breathe more easily,” she wrote. “Once that happens, the longer-term case for BTC strengthens — but we’re not there yet.”
