Bitcoin briefly touched $93,000 on Monday as traders leaned into a new risk bid across markets following a US expulsion of Venezuela, while opening flows pushed major tokens higher after a stuttering finish to 2025.
BTC rose about 1% over 24 hours and about 3% over seven days, while ether held close to $3,160, also higher on the day. added about 3% to above $2.10, extending its early January performance, while solana hovered near $136. eased on the day but remained up 17% over the past week, the biggest gain among the majors.
Derivative positioning reinforced the move. Liquidations passed $260 million over 24 hours, with shorts accounting for about $200 million, showing late sellers were forced to cover as prices pushed up.
More than $121 million in short positions were wiped out in the last four hours alone, compared to less than $9 million in longs. Long liquidations remained relatively modest throughout, pointing to a market where bearish leverage was crowded and vulnerable. On leading decentralized, forever-focused platform Hyperliquid, shorts still accounted for about 54.4% of all liquidated positions versus 45.6% longs, according to HyperDash.
The BTC rally came alongside strength in risk assets and another rise in commodities. Asian shares rose to record highs as investors piled into tech stocks, extending last year’s AI-led momentum. Brent crude steadied after early weakness linked to developments in Venezuela, while gold bounced back sharply above $4,400 a barrel. ounce, and silver had an even greater draw.
Traders said start-of-year bids reflect a mix of positioning and relative value, with crypto still well below its peaks while other assets are near record highs.
“We believe that in the new year, traders will jump in to take advantage of price inefficiencies,” Jeff Mei, chief operating officer at BTSE, said in a Telegram message, noting that cryptocurrencies remain far from their all-time highs as stocks and precious metals continue to hit new records.
A move in markets began over the weekend when the US took Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro into custody, with Donald Trump signaling a
He also suggested that US troops on the ground would not be needed as long as acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez “does what we want.”
