Bitcoin edged lower on Monday after posting early gains during Asian trading, remaining largely stuck within last week’s range as investor sentiment stayed fragile amid escalating tensions between U.S. President Donald Trump and the Federal Reserve.
Ongoing geopolitical uncertainty, combined with investor caution ahead of key U.S. economic data releases later this week, continued to weigh on overall risk appetite.
Bitcoin also underperformed a rally in technology stocks, which were boosted by renewed optimism surrounding artificial intelligence. While the world’s largest cryptocurrency has historically moved in tandem with tech equities, that correlation has gradually weakened over the past year.
The absence of clear positive catalysts for the crypto sector has left Bitcoin under pressure through late 2025 and into early 2026.
By 09:25 ET (14:25 GMT), Bitcoin was down around 1% at $90,166.
Fed legal risks and geopolitics curb crypto demand
Bitcoin’s limited upside reflected a renewed hit to risk appetite on Monday. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell disclosed that the central bank had been subpoenaed by the Department of Justice and could face a potential criminal indictment related to the renovation of its headquarters.
Powell suggested the investigation was politically driven, pointing to repeated pressure from the Trump administration to aggressively cut interest rates.
His remarks triggered losses in U.S. stock futures and prompted a move into traditional safe-haven assets, particularly gold and other precious metals. Markets grew increasingly concerned that rising friction between the White House and the Fed could erode the central bank’s independence, especially with Trump expected to nominate Powell’s successor in the near future.
Geopolitical risks added to the cautious mood. Trump renewed calls for U.S. control over Greenland, a scenario markets viewed with heightened concern following Washington’s recent incursion into Venezuela. Elsewhere, diplomatic tensions between China and Japan showed little sign of easing, while investors also monitored nationwide protests in Iran and the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Ethereum could take the lead in 2026, Standard Chartered says
Standard Chartered believes 2026 could mark a turning point for Ethereum, with its fundamentals improving relative to Bitcoin.
Analyst Geoff Kendrick noted that Bitcoin’s recent weakness has weighed on dollar-based crypto forecasts, prompting downward revisions to Ethereum’s absolute price outlook for 2026 through 2028.
However, Kendrick said Ethereum’s relative prospects have strengthened, adding that the ETH/BTC cross could gradually move back toward its 2021 highs.
He highlighted continued accumulation by Bitmine Immersion Technologies, the largest corporate treasury focused on Ethereum, even as ETF inflows and broader institutional buying have cooled. Kendrick also emphasized Ethereum’s leading role in stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets, and decentralized finance as long-term structural advantages.
Network upgrades are another key support. Plans to increase Ethereum’s layer-one throughput by roughly tenfold appear to be progressing, and historical analysis suggests that higher throughput correlates with higher market capitalization.
Potential regulatory clarity could further bolster Ethereum, with passage of the U.S. CLARITY Act viewed as a particularly positive development. While Kendrick lowered his end-2026 Ethereum price forecast to $7,500, he introduced a new long-term target of $40,000 by the end of 2030.
Crypto prices today: altcoins drift lower ahead of US CPI
Broader cryptocurrency prices also softened alongside Bitcoin on Monday, remaining mostly confined within recent trading ranges.
Investor focus this week is firmly on U.S. consumer price index inflation data for December, due on Tuesday, which could influence expectations for future interest rate moves.
Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency, slipped about 1% to $3,082, while XRP fell more than 2%. Solana bucked the trend, edging 1.1% higher, while Cardano and BNB declined by over 2% each.
Among meme coins, Dogecoin dropped 3.4%, while the $TRUMP token slid roughly 4%.
