On Tuesday, major U.S. equity benchmarks recovered from steep intraday declines, with the S&P 500 ending 0.9% lower after an earlier 2.5% plunge as conflict involving Iran and a spike in oil prices unnerved investors. Bitcoin traded around $68,000 after briefly touching $70,000 on Monday, while Brent crude surged above $87 per barrel and rate-cut expectations were pushed further out.

Circle's stock jumped almost 50% in under two sessions after the USDC issuer reported stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings and revenue. The rally triggered an estimated $500 million in losses for short sellers and followed a prior 80% drawdown, but analysts said the move was driven mainly by crowded bearish positioning rather than a fundamental turnaround.

Bitcoin fell more than 4% on Monday to a low of $64,300, triggering $458 million in liquidations, with 92% coming from leveraged long positions. The pullback drove the Crypto Fear and Greed Index down to 5 out of 100, a level reached only three times since 2018, while on-chain and technical signals indicate ongoing investor stress and a cautious outlook.

Bitcoin is consolidating around $70,000 after reclaiming $68,800 and moving above the 100‑hour SMA, but the medium‑term bias remains negative. InvestTech highlights a falling channel and says bulls need to retake the 200‑day EMA near $95,700, with $72,000–$72,500 a key cap and $69,400–$65,000 the main support band.

On Friday morning in Asia, Bitcoin briefly touched $60,000 before stabilizing near $64,000, a roughly 10% daily decline after a near $10,000 move and $1.39 billion in leveraged liquidations. CoinMarketCap's sentiment index fell to a record 5, while Strategy posted a $12.4 billion fourth-quarter net loss as its 713,000-plus BTC holdings traded below a $76,052 cost basis.

After slipping below $75,000 on Monday, Bitcoin changed hands at $78,989 by Tuesday morning, up 1.7% in 24 hours, per CoinMarketCap. Polymarket tallied about $1 million in Bitcoin prediction volume Monday, with odds of a drop below $65,000 in 2026 set at 71%, even as Ethereum and Solana also advanced.

Crypto assets fell on Tuesday alongside major U.S. equity indexes after President Trump's latest tariff threats against European countries reignited trade war concerns. Bitcoin briefly broke below $88,000 before rebounding near $89,752, while the total crypto market value slipped to $3.03 trillion and Ethereum and Solana posted steeper losses. As investors rotated into gold, silver and U.S. Treasuries, Bitcoin and major altcoins continued to trade in tight ranges, reflecting cautious positioning ahead of Trump's World Economic Forum engagements in Davos this week.

Short‑term charts are fading while longer‑term gauges tilt bearish, with a composite weekly screen turning to sell and key levels cited at $86,000 support and $93,400 resistance. Forecasts for 2026 diverge, with some industry voices expecting new highs on institutional participation and others warning of a slide toward $50,000 or even $10,000.

On December 15, 2025, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee confirmed it would postpone markup of crypto market structure legislation to early 2026. Bitcoin fell over 4% in the past 24 hours, briefly touching $84,000 and stabilizing near $85,800, while total crypto market capitalization slipped to $2.93 trillion.