Bitcoin nudged higher toward $89,000 in early Asian trading as the region opened on an uneven note. With little conviction at the open, traders quickly shifted focus to a busy stretch of US earnings and renewed chatter around fresh funding for OpenAI.
Crypto liquidity remained thin. Spot bitcoin ETFs saw little in the way of new inflows after last week’s heavy redemptions, while derivatives positioning continued to cool. Together, that’s kept traders comfortable fading moves and sticking to short-term ranges rather than betting on a breakout.
Across mainland China, equity markets sent mixed signals. The Shanghai Composite climbed 0.21%, with the DJ Shanghai index up 0.22%, while the SZSE Component slipped 0.10% and the China A50 fell 0.20%.
Market snapshot
Bitcoin: $89,158 (+0.7%)
Ether: $3,007 (+2.5%)
XRP: $1.90 (-0.6%)
Total crypto market cap: $3.10 trillion (+0.7%)
Hong Kong stood out. The Hang Seng jumped 1.22%, catching a stronger bid for risk even as mainland markets moved in different directions. Gains across parts of Asia followed strength in US equity futures after the Wall Street Journal reported that SoftBank is in talks to invest up to $30 billion more in OpenAI.
Currency markets stayed jittery. The dollar remained under pressure as traders watched for fresh signals from Washington and tried to gauge the Federal Reserve’s next move.
Meanwhile, gold continued to shine. Prices pushed above $5,200 an ounce, setting a new record as investors leaned into safe havens amid economic uncertainty and ongoing geopolitical risks.
In the US, the S&P 500 eked out another record close on Tuesday — its fifth straight gain — as markets positioned for results from megacap tech companies. Not everything moved higher, though. Health insurers slid sharply after the Trump administration proposed changes to Medicare payment rates, with UnitedHealth leading the declines.
Looking ahead, markets are bracing for the next wave of catalysts: more big-tech earnings, the Fed’s decision on Wednesday, and, in crypto, any sign of renewed ETF inflows or futures activity that could finally push bitcoin out of its recent range.
