Key Takeaways
- BTC surged to $85,500 following a softer U.S. PCE inflation reading before pulling back to $83,700.
- U.S. Treasury yields remained near their strongest levels in over two decades, capping upside momentum.
- Mid-tier whale addresses holding 10-10K BTC accumulated 41,025 BTC over a 10-day span, according to Santiment.
- Technical analyst Ted Pillows warned of potential downside into the upper $70,000 range before renewed uptrend.
- Ether is tracking toward roughly 70% quarterly gains, while XRP has climbed more than 40% this quarter.
Bitcoin edged up 0.4% to slightly above $83,700 during Thursday’s Asian trading session. This followed Wednesday’s action when a milder-than-anticipated U.S. inflation reading briefly drove the leading cryptocurrency to $85,500.
August’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) report revealed year-over-year price increases of 3.4%. The core metric, which strips out volatile food and energy components, registered a 3.0% annual gain.
According to Dan Khus, chief analyst at LVRG Research, the figures reduced expectations for another Federal Reserve rate increase in October. Market participants are now viewing December as a more probable window for policy tightening.
“Crypto markets interpreted this as a positive signal,” Khus explained. Bitcoin reclaimed the $85,000 level as government bond yields temporarily declined.
However, the upward momentum proved short-lived. By the close of traditional Wall Street trading, most of the rally had evaporated.
Bond Market Pressure Persists Despite Inflation Relief
The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield hovered near 5.28%, barely below Wednesday’s session high. Meanwhile, the 30-year yield stabilized around 5.62% after reaching levels not seen since 2002.
A decline in crude oil prices helped moderate the bond selloff. Concurrently, the U.S. dollar gained strength relative to major global currencies.
Vetle Lunde, an analyst at K33, noted that climbing yields are “driving capital away from riskier assets.” He emphasized that bitcoin remains in consolidation mode following its strongest weekly close since January.
Alternative cryptocurrencies displayed varied performance. HYPE topped the gainers list with a 3% advance to approximately $89. DOGE climbed nearly 2%, settling just below the 10-cent mark.
Ether, BNB, TRX, and ZEC each registered modest increases under 1%. XRP remained unchanged at $1.50, while SOL dipped almost 1% to trade just beneath $119.
Technical analyst Ted Pillows referenced a chart formation from early 2023. He suggested bitcoin experienced a substantial pullback after validating its cyclical low, and a comparable scenario might push prices into the high $70,000 territory before initiating the next upward phase.
Institutional Accumulation Continues While Small Holders Remain Inactive
Santiment Intelligence monitored behavior among medium-sized bitcoin holders. Their research revealed that addresses containing between 10 and 10,000 BTC accumulated 41,025 BTC across a 10-day timeframe, pushing their aggregate holdings to 13.64 million BTC—representing 67.93% of circulating supply.
According to Santiment, this cohort has returned to accumulation levels last observed during August’s mid-month rally. In contrast, the smallest retail addresses holding under 0.01 BTC exhibited minimal activity during the same window.
Iliya Kalchev, analyst at Nexo Dispatch, identified signs of profit realization in other market segments. He highlighted that seven-day altcoin deposits to centralized exchanges climbed to their highest point since October 2025.
Ether changed hands near $2,700 and remains positioned for approximately 70% quarterly appreciation. XRP appears set to conclude the quarter with gains exceeding 40% despite its recent pullback to $1.50.
Technology equities extended a similar risk-seeking sentiment into Asian markets. Japan’s Nikkei index surged 2.7%, and South Korea’s Kospi advanced 1.2% following an optimistic earnings outlook from Micron Technology.
