Bitcoin Drops Below $85,000 as Market Reacts to US FED Standstill

Bitcoin has drifted once more into the familiar $81,000 to $85,000 corridor, where it's lingered for days. Deprived of encouraging headlines, BTC has lost the thrust to sustain its bullish course.

In this silence, the road to $90,000 grows steeper, and the shadow of volatility deepens — with a slide to $80,000 now a looming possibility.

With the fear and greed index falling to 27 points, market sentiment has turned cautious — mirroring Bitcoin’s recent volatility and its usual ripple effect across the crypto market.

Nonetheless, BTC dominance remains above 60%, and the altseason index continues to hover at 21, reinforcing the narrative: Bitcoin season is still in charge.

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Bitcoin may be sliding again, but institutional buyers aren’t backing down. On March 20, 2025, U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw net inflows of $165.7 million, according to data from CoinGlass — extending their winning streak to four straight days.

Cumulatively, ETFs have added roughly $661 million in net inflows since the start of the week. However, that momentum pales in comparison to the more than $3 billion in net losses recorded this month.

Blame the Whales: Bitcoin Stuck, Ethereum Stirring

The climb of Bitcoin has been quietly subdued — not by news or macro pressure, but by the invisible hand of market whales. As noted by Material Indicators, these large players deployed spoofing tactics, lining the order books with sell limits that shape the market’s ceiling and guide retail behavior.

And while the spotlight remains on BTC and its manipulators, Ethereum may be staging a subtler play. ETH reserves on exchanges have fallen to 8.97 million, their lowest in ten years — a whisper of long-term conviction amid the noise.

That said, a near-term rally in ETH seems unlikely. The project continues to suffer from weakening market dominance and repeated underperformance versus BTC — key factors weighing down sentiment.

Still, the shift toward accumulation by major investors suggests faith in the project’s resilience has not faded.

A stable breakout above $85,000 could lift sentiment across the board — with Ethereum poised to rally and perhaps even eclipse Bitcoin’s momentum.

Failing that, Bitcoin may slide beneath $80,000, opening the door to a test of $77,000 — the correction’s sharpest trough to date.

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