Bitcoin is wrapping up its first full trading week of 2026 with little price movement. The leading cryptocurrency remains stable near the $90,000 mark, reflecting a slight decline of about 2% since the year began.
The digital asset has struggled to surpass the $95,000 barrier, which has acted as a significant resistance level following last October’s sharp downturn.
After showing some gains during the New Year rally earlier this week, Bitcoin lost steam after reaching just under $94,800 on Monday. At present, it trades around $90,674.
Market participants are exercising caution amid ongoing concerns over tariffs discussed in Washington, uncertainty about who will lead the Federal Reserve next, and evolving regulations surrounding cryptocurrencies. The US Supreme Court postponed its anticipated ruling on Friday regarding tariffs imposed by former President Donald Trump. This delay—combined with ETF activity and geopolitical tensions—has kept Bitcoin in a holding pattern.
Jake Ostrovskis, head of OTC trading at Wintermute remarked: “Following an energetic start to 2026, we’re witnessing typical consolidation after a rally.”
Stronger-than-expected economic indicators have diminished expectations for additional interest rate cuts soon. This development is curbing Bitcoin’s momentum toward reclaiming its all-time high above $126,000 recorded last October.
James Butterfill from CoinShares’ research team noted: “The macroeconomic data generally exceeds forecasts. As a result, chances for rate reductions in March appear lower than before—putting short-term downward pressure on prices.”
Nevertheless some analysts view this current pause as healthy for long-term growth. Brian Vieten—a senior analyst specializing in digital assets at Siebert Financial—explained: “Bitcoin is stabilizing near $90K following an extended sell-off caused by worries over tax loss harvesting and fears that MSCI might delist companies holding digital asset treasuries; those risks have now eased considerably.”
This week MSCI decided to abandon plans to exclude digital asset treasury firms from their indices after concluding these entities function similarly to mutual funds.
Despite short-term challenges clouding sentiment somewhat,the outlook remains optimistic over longer horizons.Butterfill predicts that Bitcoin could reach around $200K by year-end.Ostrovskis added that breaking decisively above $95K would likely spark renewed buying interest and potentially propel prices back into six figures.He stated:“A sustained move beyond $95K could ignite reflexive market gains.”
*This content does not constitute financial advice.*