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Bitcoin continues its winning streak as ETFs see largest inflows since October

One expert noted that in the short term, a critical level to watch for bitcoin is $107,500, while another expressed optimism for the asset to rise to $130,000 this quarter.

Bitcoin continues its upward trajectory in the first week of 2026, driven by large ETF inflows and renewed liquidity. On Tuesday morning, bitcoin was trading around $93,800, continuing its streak of only going up each day in 2026.

Nic Puckrin, cofounder of Coin Bureau, told Sherwood News that we’ve seen a rebound in bitcoin, alongside precious metals, despite the action in Venezuela, “but likely not necessarily because of it.”

“It’s more likely we’re seeing this rebound because bitcoin was heavily oversold last year and investors are rebalancing portfolios,” he said.

Puckrin added that trading volumes still remain muted, however.

“We would need to see further improvement here for confirmation that this upward trend has legs. For now, it could be more of a reflexive bounce than a sustained shift in momentum,” he said.

Timothy Misir, head of research at Blockhead Research Network, echoed the sentiment, saying that this is a market stabilizing, not accelerating.

“The coming weeks will determine whether fresh capital can translate into durable momentum or whether time remains the dominant force shaping price,” Misir said. 

On Monday, bitcoin ETFs recorded their largest inflows since October 7, totaling $697.25 million, with BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust taking the lion’s share at $372.4 million, according to SoSoValue.

Also reflecting optimism, the CoinMarketCap Fear and Greed Index stood at 49, its highest level since early October, when the crypto market experienced enormous liquidations.

Short-term, a critical level to watch for bitcoin is $107,500, as this is where a structural break would occur, said Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget.

She said that if the price consolidates above this level, “whether through a pullback or without it, BTC could continue moving higher toward a new ATH and beyond.”

Looking ahead, Farzam Ehsani, CEO of VALR, told Sherwood that aggressive price growth in bitcoin is likely to begin once the rally in precious metals fades, as the asset’s sideways movement against the backdrop of record-breaking gains in gold and silver resembles a calm before the storm, typically followed by a broader crypto market rally.

“The end of the precious metals rally could act like a lit match in a powder keg,” he said.

Ehsani estimated that in the first quarter of 2026, bitcoin could rise to $130,000, while in the unlikely event of a sharp decline in precious metal prices back to early 2025 levels, it could surpass $200,000.

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Meme coins are low-key back to start the year, with pepe taking the early lead in 2026 gains

The meme-based pepe is the fastest horse in the crypto race in the new year so far, with the price of the cryptocurrency increasing 34% in the last 24 hours.

The price swing resulted in the liquidation of nearly $9.9 million worth of pepe short positions in the last 24 hours, data from CoinGlass shows. 

The frog-based coin has seen a 24-hour trading volume of nearly $1.6 billion and is not the only meme coin outpacing the broader crypto market.

Dogecoin, shiba inu, and PUMP have each risen between 8.4% and 10.9% in the last 24 hours, joining pepe as the top gainers in the period, a sign of life for meme tokens, which as a category lost more than half their value last year. 

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