Bitcoin Nears $87,000 as Asia Markets Pause After Seven-Day Rally; US Tech Stocks Slip
Bitcoin hovered near $87,000 as Asia markets paused following a seven-day rally. Meanwhile, US tech stocks declined toward the year-end, with Tesla, Nvidia, and Meta among the losers. The MSCI Asia Pacific index slid 0.1%, S&P 500 futures fell 0.3%, and the Nasdaq 100 dropped 0.5%. Gold and silver retreated after hitting fresh peaks amid profit-taking and thinner liquidity post-holidays.
Nansen's Jake Kennis noted that Bitcoin and Ethereum have largely traded sideways over the past week, attributing this to year-end seasonality rather than any shift in market structure. On-chain activity cooled, with Base pulling back in decentralized exchange volumes. Solana remained the dominant on-chain trading venue by volume, followed by BNB Chain. Trading activity slowed and became more selective as the year closed, rather than disappearing.
Investors are awaiting the Federal Reserve's December meeting minutes to gauge rate expectations, with positioning crowding influencing market moves. Year-to-date, the MSCI All Country World Index is up about 21%, while broad Asian stocks have risen approximately 26% in 2025. The steadiness in Bitcoin is seen as a positioning pause rather than a conviction push, with a focus on liquidity, flows, and volatility heading into early 2026.
