In 2026, institutional investors are buying about six times more Bitcoin than miners are issuing, after a sharp demand surge that began in 2024. This imbalance, together with accelerating global M2 growth and renewed spot ETF inflows, is tightening BTC's market structure around the $96,000 level. While liquidity tailwinds could support further upside, any slowdown in money supply or reversal in ETF flows may quickly weaken the current bullish momentum.

Bitcoin’s latest advance has been powered largely by leverage and a major short squeeze that, according to Glassnode, marked the biggest short-liquidation event among the top 500 cryptocurrencies since 10 October 2025. As OG holders slow their selling and whales hedge by rotating into shorts while retail adds leveraged longs, the rally appears more fragile and vulnerable to a corrective phase if funding cools and leverage unwinds.

Strategy has accumulated Bitcoin through multiple cycles since 2020; on January 5, 2026 its holdings reached 673,783 BTC, worth about $61.75 billion. Exchange netflows briefly turned positive with roughly 1,100 BTC sent to exchanges over the past 48 hours, while price ranged between $89,000 and $94,000 near $91,000.

On Thursday, 15 January, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee is scheduled to vote on the CLARITY Act, a comprehensive crypto market structure bill. The proposal would clearly define digital commodities and digital assets, grant the CFTC control over digital commodity spot markets, and leave securities-like oversight with the SEC. If approved, it could tighten rules on market manipulation, require stronger transparency from exchanges, and potentially draw more institutional capital into U.S. crypto markets.

From early 2025 into early 2026, BTC's volume dominance slid from 45–50% toward 30–35%, while altcoins expanded above 55% and often 60–65%. ETH's share fluctuated between 20% and 30%. On-chain metrics show Ethereum addresses climbed from about 300 million to 370 million, but BNB Chain led with past 730 million addresses and roughly 4.4 million daily active users.

Memecoin metrics swung from a mid-December slide to an early January rebound. Sector capitalization climbed from around $38 billion to near $48 billion before easing to $44.69 billion, with volume up 17.42% to $4.75 billion. BONK, SHIB, and PEPE posted double-digit weekly gains, while smaller tokens like WIF and FARTCOIN also advanced.

In 2025, BNB Chain quietly became the most actively used major EVM network, overtaking rival chains on key on-chain metrics as the market moved toward 2026. While Ethereum continued to dominate in fees and settlement value, BNB Chain led in active addresses and transactions, reflecting more routine, retail-driven usage rather than short-lived hype cycles.

Bitcoin's price action in 2026 remains range‑bound after peaking above $126,000 in October 2025 and retreating to the $90,000 area by January 2026. According to CryptoQuant and a post by analyst Darkforst on X, negative Exchange Netflows, a short‑term holder cost basis near $103,000, and losses of roughly 15% highlight ongoing stress despite support between $85,000 and $92,000.