Bitcoin Price Crosses $90,000 In Post-Holiday Rally — But Don’t Get Excited Yet

[Ben Graham]

The Bitcoin price and crypto market might have lagged behind the global financial market in terms of performance following the Christmas holiday. The story was a little different for the digital asset market after the New Year’s holiday, with altcoins specifically enjoying the bulk of the rally.

On Friday, January 2nd, the premier cryptocurrency jumped to above the psychological $90,000 level. However, the latest on-chain data suggests that there is no need for investors to be excited about the recent Bitcoin price action.

Bitcoin Price Needs To Cross The STH Average Cost At $99,000

In a January 2nd post on the X platform, crypto analyst Burak Kesmeci revealed that the recent price jump for Bitcoin does not say a lot about the current market structure. The on-chain data pundit’s evaluation is based on the Short-Term Holder (STH) Realized Price, which currently lies around the $99,000 level.

For context, the Short-Term Holder Realized Price is an on-chain metric that tracks the average price where Bitcoin short-term investors (holding for less than 115 days) acquired their coins. Being the average cost basis of the most reactive group of investors, the STH Realized Price often functions as a dynamic support and resistance level.

While the price of BTC slipped beneath the Short-Term Holder Realized Price four times in the past year, it has been below this critical threshold since September 2025. According to Kesmeci, the Bitcoin price needs to close above this STH Realized Price at $99,000 before bull run conversations can resume.

Kesmeci wrote on X:

No bull market without the short-term investor with a broken heart being made happy.

This statement reiterates the importance of short-term investors in market dynamics. For instance, in this case, breaking the Short-Term Holder Realized Price would suggest the return of demand and confidence among the most reactive investor cohort.

Data Converges Between $99,000 And $102,000

Furthermore, Kesmeci pointed out that additional on-chain data reinforces the critical importance of the $99,000 region to the Bitcoin price trajectory. The crypto analyst said that significant data is converging in the $99,000 – $102,000 range, and until this region is surpassed, the price of BTC might continue to struggle.

In an earlier post on the X platform, Kesmeci had revealed that the price of BTC needs to close above $101,000 for the long-term trend to turn positive. This explains why the analyst later concluded that the $99,000 – $102,000 bracket is pivotal to Bitcoin’s health.

As of this writing, the Bitcoin price stands at around $90,110, reflecting a roughly 2% jump in the past 24 hours.