Why Is Crypto Up Today? – January 9, 2026

On January 9, 2026, the cryptocurrency market has seen a slight uptick, with a market capitalization rise of 0.3%, now totaling $3.18 trillion. However, most top-tier cryptocurrencies have experienced losses within the last 24 hours, resulting in mixed market sentiments. The total trading volume remains significant at $112 billion.

Key Takeaways

Cryptocurrency market capitalization increased by 0.3% to $3.18 trillion.
63 out of the top 100 cryptocurrencies saw declines over the last day.
Bitcoin (BTC) rose by 0.3%, trading at $90,247, while Ethereum (ETH) dropped by 0.8% to $3,089.
Significant drops were noted for Tron (TRX), down by 1%, while Solana (SOL) led gains with a rise of 2.9%.
Market sentiment is mildly cautious, with the crypto fear and greed index at 41, indicating increasing fears about future performance.

why is crypto up today

Crypto Market Overview

Currently, the cryptocurrency market is showing a slight increase. The overall market capitalization has reached $3.18 trillion, reflecting a modest rise of 0.3%. Despite this, it's important to note that 63 of the top 100 cryptocurrencies have seen their values decline in the past 24 hours, while the total trading volume for cryptocurrencies is at $112 billion.

Winners and Losers in Crypto

As of Friday morning, four out of the top ten cryptocurrencies by market capitalization have experienced price drops over the last 24 hours, while four have posted gains, excluding stablecoins.

Bitcoin (BTC) has a minor increase of 0.3% and is currently trading at $90,247.
Ethereum (ETH) has decreased by 0.8% to a price of $3,089, marking the second-largest drop in this category.
The largest decline has been recorded by Tron (TRX), down 1% to $0.2931.
Solana (SOL), however, showed the most significant growth, rising 2.9% to $138.
Binance Coin (BNB) climbed by 0.7%, reaching $890.

Among the top 100 coins, two notable double-digit increases have been observed: Pol (POL) up 12.5% to $0.1462 and Zcash (ZEC) up 11.2% to $436. Conversely, the biggest drop belongs to Sky (SKY), which fell 4.8% to $0.05761, followed by Rain (RAIN) with a decrease of 3.6% to $0.008503.

In economic news, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has called on the Federal Reserve to quicken its interest rate cuts, despite recent positive job reports. The Fed had previously implemented three consecutive cuts totaling 75 basis points, bringing the benchmark rate to between 3.5% and 3.75%. Markets, however, are anticipating fewer reductions in 2026.

Upcoming Economic Data

Before today's US employment report, the first major data release of the year, Fabian Dori, Chief Investment Officer at Sygnum, noted that markets are kicking off the new business week with several key macroeconomic indicators set to be published. Dori highlighted that the non-farm payrolls, unemployment rates, and wage growth figures are particularly significant since the Fed's recent rate cuts were based on a softening labor market.

Dori emphasized that interpreting data is unusually challenging due to various shifting factors, such as changes in immigration policy, AI-related impacts on labor demand, and market stress that has required the Fed to manage liquidity alongside its usual goals of controlling inflation and managing employment.

While purchasing manager index (PMI) sub-indices for new orders and service employment have shown recent improvements, a substantial rebound in hiring or wage growth would be surprising. Soft inflation data and ongoing discussions about the neutral rate under new Fed leadership suggest risks toward a more flexible rate policy, which may favor high-risk assets, including technology stocks and cryptocurrencies.

Market analyst Samer Hasn from XS.com pointed out that Bitcoin is currently “barely holding above the $90,000 level.” The current pullback can be attributed to a steady decrease in market liquidity across various sectors, including on-chain activity and both spot and futures ETFs.

According to Hasn, the decline isn't driven by panic but rather hesitation among buyers, who seem uncertain about pushing prices higher amid current market sentiment.

Key Levels for Bitcoin and Ethereum

As of Friday morning, BTC is trading at $90,247. After starting the day at $89,900, it briefly dropped to an intraday low of $89,343, climbed to a high of $91,360, and is now trading around $89,600.

The current critical resistance zone for BTC is between $94,000 and $97,300. If Bitcoin breaks through this resistance, it could pave the way towards $100,700 and the $105,000–$108,000 range. Conversely, should it fail to maintain the $90,000 level, it could see a decline to $86,900 or even $80,500.

Bitcoin Trading Levels

Ethereum is presently priced at $3,089. It began the day at $3,125, dipped to an intraday low of $3,058, rose to $3,133, and briefly came back down to around $3,060.

ETH is currently fluctuating between $3,050 and $3,120. A breakout above this range may lead to price movements towards $3,230 and $3,330, while further declines could pull the price below $3,000.

Market sentiment remains cautious, hovering at the neutral zone with the crypto fear and greed index currently at 41 compared to 43 the previous day. This indicates rising concerns over the market's mid-term performance.

Crypto Sentiment Index

Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) Update

The US Bitcoin spot ETFs have shown notable outflows again, recording negative flows of $398.95 million on Thursday. This brings the total net inflow down to below $57 billion, currently at $56.65 billion. Out of the twelve BTC ETFs, five experienced outflows, while two had inflows, with BlackRock and Fidelity reporting the highest outflows of $193.34 million and $120.52 million, respectively.

In contrast, Bitwise and WisdomTree had inflows of $2.96 million and $1.92 million, respectively.

BTC ETF Outflows

Additionally, US Ethereum ETFs faced a decline as well, recording outflows of $159.17 million on January 8, bringing the total net inflow down to $12.53 billion. Five of the nine funds saw outflows, with BlackRock leading with outflows of $107.65 million, followed by Grayscale’s $44.62 million.

ETH ETF Outflows

Legal Update from South Korea

Finally, South Korea’s Supreme Court has ruled that Bitcoin held in domestic exchanges like Upbit and Bithumb can be legally seized under the Criminal Procedure Act. The court classified Bitcoin as “an electronic token that can be independently managed, traded, and substantially controlled in terms of economic value.”

Market Outlook

In recent market updates, the cryptocurrency sector has experienced downturns over the past 24 hours. Meanwhile, the US stock market closed with mixed results on Thursday, recording a slight increase in the S&P 500 by 0.0077%, a decrease in the Nasdaq-100 by 0.57%, and a rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average by 0.55%.

Analysts suggest that the current market consolidation may lead to further small decreases, although some predict potential near-term increases as well.