Bitcoin traded as high as $86,332 on Monday, reaching its highest level in eight months and revisiting a price last seen in January.
With bullish sentiment returning to crypto markets, traders are now focused on a straightforward question: what comes next for Bitcoin after the latest surge.
The current move built on a rebound that started near $62,000 on August 17. Monday’s developing candlestick opened at $81,152 and closed with a 4.98% gain, nearly matching Bitcoin’s performance last week. In the span of a month, the rally carried BTC back above $80,000.
Even after that jump, Bitcoin is still a bit more than 30% below its October 2025 record above $126,000. Its year-to-date loss has narrowed to less than 3%, leaving a sizable gap between current levels and the all-time high, even after last week’s aggressive short squeeze.
Myriad has turned that debate into a prediction market question, asking traders how high Bitcoin will go.
Short liquidations are still a major part of the move
According to CoinGlass, crypto markets saw $877.31 million in liquidations over the last 24 hours. Of that total, $740.79 million, or roughly 84%, came from short positions that were wiped out as Bitcoin climbed. More than 126,000 accounts were liquidated during the period, and the single largest liquidation was an $11.29 million BTC/USDT order on Binance.
Bitcoin represented $491.48 million of the total liquidations, while Ethereum accounted for $195.11 million. That fits a pattern seen repeatedly during this rally: short sellers keep leaning against the move, and each push higher forces more of them out, which adds momentum instead of stopping it.
Macro support is helping
One tailwind came from falling oil prices. Brent crude has declined for four straight sessions as traders bet that Washington and Tehran could ease tensions around this week’s United Nations General Assembly. That has reduced pressure on assets that are sensitive to inflation.
Markets are also positioning ahead of a planned meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping on September 24. At the same time, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield has slipped back near 4.9% after hitting its highest level since October 2023 earlier this month. Lower yields usually reduce the opportunity cost of holding a non-yielding asset such as Bitcoin, making it relatively more attractive than bonds.
Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan told CNBC that the "crypto winter" is over and that markets may be entering the "strongest and longest-running bull market in crypto's history."
That view is not universally accepted. Bitcoin last traded above $85,000 in January before sliding toward $77,000, and Standard Chartered had described an earlier low as "crypto spring" in June, only for the market to weaken again afterward.
The next three weeks could define the setup
The Relative Strength Index, a gauge used to measure how hot a market is at a given moment, suggests Bitcoin is now overbought. In practical terms, traders are paying more for Bitcoin than its natural price. Combined with the market’s current volatility, the reading points to the same conclusion: Bitcoin has traveled a long distance very quickly and may need at least a pause, or a retest of the $79,071 to $80,355 support zone, before another leg higher.
A weekly close back below that area would weaken the bullish structure. Holding above it would keep the path toward new highs open.
Even so, Bitcoin is moving fast enough that caution remains warranted. After a long and sustained crypto winter, these kinds of moves may feel more normal than they would under different conditions. Traders betting on a continued rise still have reasons to hold their positions. Bitcoin is now testing a resistance zone, and a break above it could send the price as high as $95,000 before it runs into another major volume zone, implying an additional 15% gain.
Prediction market traders are reflecting that optimism. On Myriad, a market developed by Decrypt parent company Dastan, traders are currently pricing in a 50% chance that Bitcoin reaches $90,000 before the end of the month and a 28% chance that it touches $92,500.
Bitcoin’s next moves will also depend on a macro calendar outside its control. Trump and Xi are scheduled to meet in New York on September 24. The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge is due on September 30, the September jobs report follows on October 2, and consumer price data is set for October 14.
The original article also states that the views expressed by the author are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice.