Bitcoin BTC USD Price Slides Toward Fourth Monthly Loss: Echoing 2018 Pain?

[Ben Graham]

BTC USD traders are at a tough spot. After what appeared to be a promising start to 2025, things took a turn for the worse. True, the Bitcoin price soared, hitting fresh all-time highs of over $126,000. However, buyers didn’t manage to maintain the momentum. By the end of the year, the BTC USD price ended in red, losing over 17%.

Given the sequence of events, the BTC USD price appears to be headed toward its fourth straight monthly loss. All it takes for Bitcoin bulls to lose again this month is if prices fall below $87,300. Should sellers take over, pushing the digital gold below this level, then this would be the first time in over seven years, after the devastating 2018 crypto winter, for bears to score four consecutive wins against bulls in four monthly closes.

At spot rates, the Bitcoin price is struggling for upside momentum. The BTC USD price is pinned below $90,000, and buyers are yet to peel back losses of January 25 when the coin sank towards the $87,000 mark.

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BTC USD Price Risks Dropping In 4 Consecutive Months

There are many moving parts to consider why the Bitcoin price is falling, reviving memories of the 2018 crypto winter. This comparison matters because 2018 wasn’t just a bad year; it was a stress test for Bitcoin’s survival. BTC fell roughly -75% that year after the 2017 hype faded, shaking out impatient buyers.

Looking at the current sequence of events, there is an uncomfortable question that must be asked: Is the BTC USD price history repeating itself? If sellers are truly in charge, how the Bitcoin price closes at the end of the month matters. For now, buyers must defend the $87,000 level, rejecting any attempt for the digital gold to sink to last week’s lows below and possibly liquidating leveraged longs. What’s needed is a solid close above $90,000, and ideally, $95,000, for buyers to have an opportunity to retest the psychological $100,000 mark.

$BTC stuck in bear mode for 83 days straight according to Trend Pulse indicators. Trading at $89k after failing $90k resistance again.

Back in 2017, these 3 month grinds always ended with explosive moves. The question is which direction when it finally breaks

— BATMAN (@CryptosBatman) January 26, 2026

In the 2018 crypto winter, the Bitcoin price saw a brutal stream of five negative months from August through to December, when prices sank to as low as $3,800. Should sellers take over and push below $87,000, it would mean history is rhyming to mirror the 2018 bear run. Technically, this extended sell-off will be nothing more than a structural shift from a bullish correction to a full-blown secular bear market.

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What’s Behind This State Of Crypto Weakness?

Behind the current weakness are various factors to keep in mind. At the top of the list, uncertainty surrounding Trump’s specific trade policies, like the Greenland-related tariff threats, has pushed investors toward “risk-off” assets like gold. Despite its superior liquidity, Bitcoin is relatively illiquid versus the stock market or gold, for example. This week, the yellow metal, together with other precious metals like silver, shot to record highs. For the first time, gold broke $5,000 and rallied to as high as $5,100 before retracing.

GOLD has been in a parabolic move for 28 months straight

BITCOIN catch-up rally could be insane pic.twitter.com/uAq88iwpYg

— Ash Crypto (@AshCrypto) January 23, 2026

Trump has also picked fights with independent institutions. For example, publicized conflicts between the White House and the Federal Reserve, which include threats of criminal investigation over Fed renovation projects, are creating a “policy vacuum.” Powell views these subpoenas as a pretext for political pressure now that they don’t want to slash rates as fast as the president desires.  Since the market hates uncertainty, the first to be impacted are Bitcoin, top Solana meme coins, and other “risky” assets. Until a new chair is appointed and a clear path for interest rates is defined, some of the next coins to explode will likely stall.

Apart from geopolitical factors and policy in the US, institutions appear to be de-risking. While billions of dollars of institutional money were poured into spot Bitcoin ETFs in 2024 and 2025, outflows have been sustained in early 2026. To put it in numbers, over $1.3Bn were redeemed last week.

(Source: SosoValue)

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