Bitcoin Trades Near $87,500 Amid Potential January Rebalancing Opportunities
Bitcoin traded around $87,500 in U.S. afternoon trading on December 16, 2025, marking an approximate 2% increase over the past 24 hours, with the price noted as about $87,720. Despite this uptick, Bitcoin significantly underperformed the S&P 500 by roughly 26% in the fourth quarter so far. K33 analyst Vetle Lunde suggested this pronounced underperformance versus stocks could lead to rebalancing-driven buying in January, as fund managers may adjust their Bitcoin allocation weights into the year-end.
This potential shift is supported by the notion that fund managers holding specific Bitcoin allocation targets might cause inflows in late December and early January to rebalance portfolios. Market participants remained cautious, evident by CME Bitcoin futures open interest holding steady around 124,000 BTC and perpetual funding rates near neutral levels, indicating limited short-term directional conviction. Furthermore, spot cryptocurrency trading volumes fell approximately 12% over the past week, reflecting reduced trading activity.
In broader market movements, Ether traded around $2,961.82, XRP near $1.9344, and Solana approximately at $128.14. Meanwhile, crypto-related stocks showed gains, with MicroStrategy increasing by 3% and Coinbase by 1%.
