Key Highlights
- Bitcoin nears $90K as traders focus on a new CME futures gap that could cause short-term price changes.
- Analysts warn Bitcoin may dip to $88K due to long position clusters and high leverage in the market.
- Cross-crypto liquidations surpassed $372M ahead of the Wall Street opening.
Bitcoin (BTC) is trading near $90,000 as the first Wall Street trading session of 2026 opened, with traders keeping a close eye on a new CME futures gap.
TradingView data shows BTC attempting a breakout during the Asian session. This CME gap could influence short-term price moves, as historically, Bitcoin tends to rise or fall to “fill” newly formed gaps within hours or days of futures reopening.
As traditional finance markets reopened after the holidays, a downside gap appeared on CME Group’s Bitcoin futures market, which could cause a short-term price change. Analysts noted that many long liquidations could push Bitcoin prices down temporarily, with clusters of positions near $88,000 acting as potential targets.
Trading platform TheKingfisher pointed out the buildup of long liquidation clusters, which means Bitcoin might fall a little before going up again. Data from CoinGlass also showed that liquidity was building on both sides of the market ahead of the Wall Street open.
$372 million liquidated in 24 hours
In the 24 hours before the session, liquidations across crypto totaled over $372 million, which indicated that traders are active with high risk in the market. Currently, $90,000 is a critical level. However, the price could be unpredictable because many traders use leverage, which can make gains or losses bigger.
At the same time, gold is bouncing back after a small dip at the end of 2025. Charlie Bilello, chief market strategist at Creative Planning, said, “Gold (+64%) was the best performing major asset in 2025, while Bitcoin (-6%) was the worst. Something we haven’t seen before in any calendar year.”
The reopening of CME futures and the new gap are likely to guide Bitcoin’s price in the coming days. Upcoming events, like CME Group’s earnings report on February 4, could also influence the market.
Also Read: Bitcoin Bulls Busted on Their Predictions as BTC Closes 2025 at $87K
