The price of the leading cryptocurrency dropped to $86,000 due to macroeconomic concerns. A key pressure factor was the risk of a U.S. government shutdown.
In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin lost 1%, reaching $87,950.
Ethereum fell by 1.9% to $2,882.
Presto Research analyst Rick Maeda attributed the price drop to external factors rather than internal industry events. The main trigger was the political deadlock in Washington and uncertainty over the federal budget.
The probability of a shutdown on the Polymarket prediction platform reached 78%. Concerns were heightened by threats from Democrats to block funding for the Department of Homeland Security.
Gold reached a new all-time high, surpassing $5,000 per ounce. Investors are moving away from risks and once again choosing the precious metal as the primary tool for capital protection.
Institutions Move to Cash
Negative sentiment is confirmed by data on exchange-traded funds. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a net outflow of $1.33 billion, marking the worst weekly performance since February 2025.
CIO of Kronos Research, Vincent Liu, described institutional behavior as “cautious.” However, he noted a targeted interest in the sector: ARK Invest purchased shares in Coinbase, Bullish, and Circle. Liu sees this as a sign of long-term faith in the industry.
Maeda disputed this conclusion. He argued that ARK’s strategy does not reflect overall market sentiment, as the firm invests in niche assets regardless of the market phase.
Traders are shifting their focus to corporate reports, where the results of the “Magnificent Seven” play a key role.
Investors are assessing the impact of artificial intelligence on the earnings of tech giants. These data could set a trend for the entire stock market, which will inevitably affect Bitcoin due to its high correlation with risk assets.
Additional factors include the decision of the Fed on interest rates and the release of the Producer Price Index (PPI). Maeda added that stopping the outflow from ETFs and maintaining support levels for digital gold are crucial for market stabilization.
In January, Bitwise analysts stated that the fourth quarter of 2025 marked the end of the bear cycle. However, CryptoQuant believes that Bitcoin has entered an “early phase of decline.”