BTC Steadies Around $90K as Asia Opens, Liquidity Tight and Fed Cut Priced In

Bitcoin Near $90K as Thin Liquidity Keeps Market Range-Bound Ahead of Fed Guidance

Bitcoin hovered around $90,000 after a weekend of sharp but short-lived swings, underscoring how thin year-end liquidity has become. QCP noted that perpetual open interest in both BTC and ETH has dropped nearly 50% since October, reducing the market’s capacity to absorb directional trades.

Polymarket data shows traders have fully priced in this week’s 25-basis-point Fed cut and expect a pause in January, reflecting a shallow easing path rather than a full cycle. Low market activity and an already priced-in rate move help explain why BTC remains range-bound, with larger swings likely coming from guidance surprises rather than the cut itself.

“The Fed’s rate cut may make headlines, but the bigger story is the widening divergence across major central banks,” said Gracie Lin, CEO of OKX Singapore. “The BOE is divided, the ECB is holding steady, and the BOJ is preparing to tighten at yields last seen in 2007, amid rising friction across key Asian economies.”

Lin added that recent clearing of leveraged positions has improved market structure, removing overcrowded trades and giving bitcoin room to push higher. Following this reset, BTC briefly touched $91,000 as global capital adjusts to uneven macro signals.

Market Snapshot:

BTC: Slipped toward $90,000 after early U.S. trading erased a weekend bounce, pressured by rising bond yields and softer equities.
ETH: Slightly lower but outperformed BTC, reaching its strongest relative level against bitcoin in over a month.
Gold: Dipped as traders awaited the Fed’s meeting and guidance on future moves.
Nikkei 225: Asia-Pacific stocks fell, tracking Wall Street declines as investors focused on the Fed’s decision and broader central bank signals.