Bitcoin Price Analysis: BTC Breaks Above $90,000, Year-End Rally On The Cards?
Bitcoin (BTC) and the broader cryptocurrency market have started the week in positive territory as investors hope for one last rally before the end of the year. The flagship cryptocurrency briefly crossed $90,000 early on Monday, reaching an intraday high of $90,228 before moving to its current level of $89,551. BTC is up over 2% in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, market analyst Nic Puckrin has stated that Bitcoin must rally by over 6% and surpass $93,374 to end 2025 in positive territory. However, ETF outflows suggest investors are pulling significant amounts of capital from spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs as they rebalance risk exposure.
Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Reaching Record Levels
Bitcoin mining difficulty is reaching record levels as 2026 approaches. According to data, mining difficulty rose to 148.2 trillion during the final adjustment of 2025, and is set to climb higher in January 2026. The rising difficulty highlights the growing requirement for more powerful hardware to secure the Bitcoin blockchain. According to CoinWarz, the next adjustment, set for January 8, could increase the mining difficulty to 149 trillion. Block times are currently around 9.95, just under the 10-minute target. Any upward adjustment will likely slow block production back to 10 minutes.
Bitcoin miners faced significant volatility in 2025, with network difficulty hitting record levels more than once, including two sharp jumps during September’s rally. The gains came just before October’s flash crash, squeezing mining firms between falling revenue and rising operational costs. Rising mining difficulty leads to tougher conditions for miners, who must deploy even more powerful machines to compete for block rewards as cryptographic puzzles become harder to solve.
Bank of Japan (BOJ) Mulling Further Rate Hikes Despite Yen Crash
The cryptocurrency market is bracing itself after the Bank of Japan (BOJ) minutes revealed the central bank could hike interest rates further, with one official calling for a hike every few months. Officials believe Japan’s low interest rates are one of the factors weakening the yen and adding to growing price pressure. The BOJ raised its policy rate to a 30-year high of 0.75% at the December 18-19 meeting, taking a step towards ending substantial monetary support and near-zero borrowing costs.
Board members suggested further increases to the BOJ’s policy rate, which remains negative in inflation-adjusted terms.
There is still considerable distance to levels deemed neutral.
Another official stated that the weakening yen and rising long-term interest rates were due to the BOJ’s policy rate being too low relative to inflation.
Raising the policy rate in a timely manner could curb future inflationary pressure and help hold down long-term interest rates.
Bitcoin ETFs Face Heavy Selling Pressure
Investors are pulling capital from Bitcoin ETFs as they rotate capital into Solana and XRP spot ETFs. The move indicates a shift in institutional investments as the market faces renewed volatility. Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $782 million in net outflows during the Christmas week, raising fresh questions about investor confidence. Institutional investors have significantly reduced exposure to Bitcoin after recent rallies failed to sustain momentum and breach the $90,000 mark. Profit booking has also registered a substantial jump as investors locked in their gains, pushing ETF outflows to their highest level in recent weeks.
Macroeconomic uncertainty is also driving selling pressure as investors react to changing interest rate expectations and tighter liquidity.
Digital Asset Treasuries Looking At A Bleak Future
Alan Tutar, co-founder and CEO of crypto yield platform MoreMarkets, believes digital asset companies (DATs) face a grim 2026 and could struggle to stay relevant. Tutar stated,
Going into the next year, I think that the outlook for DATs is looking a bit bleak.
2025 saw the emergence of digital asset treasuries, offering investors an additional avenue for crypto exposure. However, while their valuations surged and peaked in October, a market downturn has significantly hurt their valuations. With an increasingly crowded market, Tutar believes most treasury companies will disappear.
Most Bitcoin treasury companies will disappear with the rest of the DATs.
Tutar believes digital asset treasuries focusing on altcoins will be the first to go because they will be unable to sustain their market value above the value of their crypto holdings.
I suspect that the flagship DATs for large assets like Ethereum, Solana, and XRP will follow that way pretty quickly, too.
Bitcoin (BTC) Price Analysis
Bitcoin (BTC) retested the $90,000 level on Monday as markets opened in positive territory. The flagship cryptocurrency started the day on a bullish note and crossed $90,000, reaching an intraday high of $90,325. However, selling pressure forced buyers to retreat, with the price currently around $87,588, down 0.33%.
Meanwhile, market analyst Nic Puckrin believes Bitcoin must rally over 6% to reclaim $93,374 if it wants to end the year in positive territory. Puckrin stated in a post on X,
3 days left. 3 days for Bitcoin to recover & close up on the year. If not, this will be the first post-halving year we close in the red. 6.24% required to make this a green candle.
Bitcoin rallied to an all-time high in October before a flash crash sucked out market momentum as prices crashed across the board. BTC has registered a 30% decline since October, forming a local bottom around $80,000. Recent price action has prompted intense debate among analysts about whether the bull cycle is over. The price has stayed well below the 365-day moving average, which has been a crucial support level. Analysts are looking for cues on whether rate cuts will continue. Low interest rates are generally viewed as positive catalysts for risk assets like cryptocurrencies. The Federal Reserve cut interest rates three times in 2025, but Fed Chair Jerome Powell has remained guarded about further rate cuts, casting doubt about another cut.
There is no risk-free path for policy.
BTC has remained between $86,000 and $90,000 over the past two weeks. It ended the previous weekend at $88,639, registering a marginal increase. The price reached an intraday high of $90,541 on Monday but lost momentum and settled at $88,556. Selling pressure intensified on Tuesday as BTC fell 1.27% to $87,429. Despite the selling pressure, the price recovered on Wednesday, rising 0.21% to $87,609. However, selling pressure returned on Thursday as BTC fell 0.50% to $87,171.
Source: TradingView
BTC reached an intraday high of $89,496 on Friday but failed to sustain momentum yet again and settled at $87,296. Price action remained positive over the weekend, with BTC rising 0.59% on Saturday and 0.08% on Sunday to $87,877. The price reached an intraday high of $90,325 on Monday. However, selling pressure forced BTC to retreat below $90,000. The price is marginally down during the ongoing session, trading around $87,449.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.