Bitcoin Slips Under $80,000 as the Rally Stalls
Bitcoin drops to $77,200, down 4% on the week. ETF outflows and this week's Fed decision pin the price below a key resistance band.
The bid is fading
Bitcoin has dropped back under $80,000 and trades near $77,200 into the weekend, down roughly 4% on the week. Total crypto market cap has slipped to about $2.63 trillion, with Bitcoin dominance holding just under 60%. That leaves BTC about a third below its $126,000 all-time high from October 2025.
The latest push above $80,000 did not stick. On-chain data points to a supply wall where recent buyers are now underwater and selling into every bounce. Until price closes back above that band, the path of least resistance stays lower. Ethereum has no answer to the leader's weakness either.
Two stories in the ETF flows
The tape backs up the caution. US spot Bitcoin ETFs have bled close to half a billion dollars in recent sessions as the institutional money that carried the summer rally steps aside ahead of the Fed. The standout is the counter-move in XRP: the new Ripple index funds are pulling strong inflows even as Bitcoin sells off. That is rotation within the asset class, not an exit from it. For the weeks ahead it points to more selective demand than a broad sell-off, with individual coins needing their own catalyst to move.
The Fed is boxed in
The real catalyst lands this week. Traders are positioning defensively into the rate decision because the outcome is genuinely open. A hawkish tone would firm up the dollar and press risk assets harder. At the same time, a growing camp doubts the policy even works: macro analyst Lyn Alden argues that higher rates barely cool US inflation anymore, because the budget deficit is now the dominant driver. A central bank that no longer controls prices on its own is a long-term case for hard assets, but a near-term source of uncertainty.
The read for traders: $80,000 is the line that decides the near-term direction. A daily close above it reopens the path toward $85,000. If the wall holds, a test of lower support is the more probable outcome than a quick recovery. Anyone positioned should run the Fed week on a tight leash.