Bitcoin loses $1,000 as another run at its eight-month high stalls

Bitcoin came within about $500 of an eight-month high before sellers stopped its advance. After reaching just shy of $86,950 early Monday, the cryptocurrency slipped back below $86,000 during Asian morning trading, according to CoinDesk (direct). The retreat erased roughly $1,000 from the peak, although bitcoin remained 1.3% higher over 24 hours. For buyers, it was another near miss at a level that has proved difficult to overcome.

The rally had gathered pace through Sunday and accelerated late in the day, taking bitcoin above $86,000 before its reversal. Its late-September high near $87,400 remained out of reach. That left a clear gap between the strength of the initial buying and buyers’ ability to hold those gains: bitcoin moved closer to its recent ceiling, but could not sustain the move toward it.

A second rally loses momentum

This was the second advance in a week to run out of steam below that September peak. Last Wednesday, bitcoin climbed to $85,500 following a softer U.S. inflation report, then surrendered the gain within hours. Monday’s reversal followed a higher peak, but the outcome was similar. Another burst of buying had failed to carry the cryptocurrency through its eight-month high.

The latest climb came after softer U.S. jobs figures on Friday reduced some pressure on the Federal Reserve to keep raising interest rates. The data encouraged expectations of lower rates and supported global stocks. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note—the return on that government debt—fell two basis points, or 0.02 percentage points, to 5.25%. Even after that decline, it remained close to its highest level since 2002.

Other major cryptocurrencies also gained, though their performance varied. Dogecoin led with an increase of more than 3%, trading just below 10 cents. XRP, BNB and ZEC each rose between 1% and 2%, according to CoinDesk data. Ether and HYPE posted gains of less than 1%, while SOL and TRX were unchanged. Bitcoin’s pullback therefore came against a backdrop of mostly higher, rather than broadly falling, cryptocurrency prices.

Stocks rise, but the dollar strengthens too

The gains extended beyond digital assets. The Nasdaq 100 finished Friday at a record, while MSCI’s Asia Pacific stock index advanced 1% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 2.5%. Oil moved the other way: Brent, a global crude benchmark, fell 0.7% to about $101.50 a barrel after Saudi Arabia lowered the price of its benchmark crude grade for buyers in Asia.

The dollar also strengthened. A Bloomberg measure of the U.S. currency gained 0.4%, while the euro dropped to its weakest level since May 2025 amid reports that Spain was preparing for an early election. Those moves accompanied bitcoin’s latest attempt to recover its September peak, with gains in stocks and a lower Treasury yield not enough to prevent the cryptocurrency’s reversal.

The next level to watch is $87,000 at the daily close. CoinDesk identified a finish above that mark as an initial sign that buyers could push through the late-September high near $87,400. Further declines in the 10-year Treasury yield are another factor to monitor. For now, bitcoin has approached the barrier again without clearing it.