Crypto prices retreat in return to downward U.S. trading day action

• Returning to what has been the norm for several weeks, crypto prices fell during U.S. trading hours, erasing overnight gains.
• The decline occurred as U.S. stocks moved modestly higher, while gold and silver rose sharply to key levels and copper touched a new record.
• Investors continue to watch the $95,000 level for bitcoin, which is seen as key resistance.

An early 2026 break in what had been a weeks-long pattern of declining crypto prices during U.S. trading sessions proved short-lived. Making a run for $95,000 as American stocks opened the day, bitcoin BTC$92.022,58 has pulled back to just above the $92,000 area just after the noon hour on the East Coast, now lower by 1.3% over the past 24 hours.

XRP, which led Monday’s crypto rally, fell more than 2% over the past two hours. Solana SOL$137,73 — which received an early boost as Morgan Stanley moved to offer a spot SOL ETF — fell back similarly.

Read more: Bitcoin eyes $94,000 as crypto prices manage early U.S. gains for second straight session

The declines occurred as U.S. stocks posted modest gains — the Nasdaq higher by 0.4% and the S&P 500 by 0.3%. The faster action was happening in the metals, with gold higher by 1% and re-taking $4,500 per ounce, and silver surging 5% and back above $80 per ounce. Copper was ahead 1.1% and topped $6 per ounce for the first time ever.

ETF inflows get off to strong start in 2026

Bitcoin ETFs saw their largest single-day inflow in nearly three months on Monday — about $697 million — pointing to fresh institutional allocations and the unwinding of year-end tax-loss harvesting. Ether ETH$3214,24 saw an even more bullish flow skew, with large block trades targeting mid- and long-dated upside via call spreads, suggesting directional conviction into the second half of 2026, according to crypto trading firm Wintermute.

Option markets continue to reflect a cautious optimism, according to Wintermute head of OTC, Jake Ostrovskis. Traders are positioning for upside in both BTC and ETH, he said, but with an eye on structural dynamics. BTC skew remains negative, a pattern driven by systematic overwriting and hedging from entities treating bitcoin as a treasury asset, Ostrovskis added.

That’s made risk-reversals — buying calls while selling puts — a cost-efficient way to express upside views, Ostroviskis said.

Looking forward, bitcoin’s price action suggests it is increasingly seen as a geopolitical hedge, less tied to inflation or central banks, but more tied to statecraft and long-term strategic positioning, said Matt Mena, crypto research strategist at 21shares.

Mena noted Bitcoin's 6% loss in 2025 and that it has already recovered a significant portion of that in the first week of 2026. Bitcoin, he reminded, has never posted back-to-back losing years.

In fact, after years when crypto was among the worst-performing asset classes, it has often rebounded sharply, as it did following market slumps in 2014, 2018 and 2022. If that pattern holds, 2026 could be shaping up as a strong year for digital assets.

• KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
• This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
• Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
• Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
• Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.

• Bitcoin dropped to around $91,530 from $93,750 after a third failed attempt to break above $94,500 in five weeks
• The decline took it back into a trading range that characterized December's pricing.
• The broader altcoin market saw steeper losses, with PENGU losing 6.5% and XRP falling 3.5% with memecoins and privacy coins the worst-performing sectors.

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