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Bitcoin, Ethereum Trade Flat On New Year's Day—XRP, Dogecoin Climb: Analyst Bullish On BTC Reclaiming $100,000 Soon

Benzinga·01/02/2026 02:33:52
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Leading cryptocurrencies consolidated with thin liquidity on the first day of 2026, while stock futures rallied.

Cryptocurrency Gains +/- Price (Recorded at 8:25 p.m. ET)
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) +0.93% $88,601.49
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH)
               
+0.67% $2,999.74
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP)                          +1.78% $1.87
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL)                          +0.72% $126.30
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE)                          +7.20% $0.1265

Sentiment Improves From ‘Extreme Fear’ To ‘Fear’

Bitcoin wobbled between $87,000 and $88,000 as bulls await a decisive breakout above $90,000. Trading activity remained thin, with volumes dropping 42% over the last 24 hours.

Ethereum continued to face heavy resistance at $3,000, while trading volume fell 37% on the first day of 2026. Dogecoin, meanwhile, rallied over 7%.

In the past 24 hours, 106,108 traders were liquidated, with total liquidations reaching $124.01 million, according to Coinglass.

Bitcoin's open interest rose 1.60% in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, over 67% of Binance traders with open BTC positions were positioned long, according to the Long/Short ratio, down from 72% a day earlier.

The market sentiment eased from “Extreme Fear” to “Fear,” according to the Crypto Fear and Greed Index.

Top Gainers (24 Hours) 

Cryptocurrency (Market Cap>$100 M) Gains +/- Price (Recorded at 8:25 p.m. ET)
River (RIVER )    +36.21%     $15.33
Story (IP )                  +19.04%       $2.01
Aerodrome Finance (AERO )           +17.21%       $0.4738

The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $3 trillion, following an increase of 0.97% in the last 24 hours.

Stocks Futures Start 2026 Higher

Stock futures edged higher on New Year's Day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures rose 65 points, or 0.13%, as of 7:45 p.m. EDT.  Futures tied to the S&P 500 rallied 0.14%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.16%.

In 2025, major stock indexes posted solid gains overall, as the S&P 500 climbed 16% and the Nasdaq Composite surged 20%.

Markets were closed for New Year's Day and will resume normal trading on Friday.

Will Bitcoin Break Through?

Michaël van de Poppe, a widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader, noted that Bitcoin is facing strong resistance at its 21-day moving average, somewhere between $88,000 and $89,000.

"I think, once it cracks that level, things should go fast to $100,000," the analyst predicted. "I’m very, very, very excited for the upcoming days."

Ted Pillows, another popular cryptocurrency market commentator, spotted an "Adam and Eve" pattern on Bitcoin's 4-hour chart, where a close above the $94,000 neckline could drive prices to $103,000-$105,000.

The Adam and Eve is a reversal pattern that can appear in both uptrends and downtrends, characterized by a double top or double bottom formation.

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Photo courtesy: Shutterstock