On September 21, Bitcoin's price exceeded $85,000, marking its highest level since late January.

At one point on Binance, Bitcoin reached $85,228, although it was trading around $84,600 at the time of this report.

15-minute BTC/USD chart from Binance. Source: TradingView.

Analysts have linked this rally to declining oil prices and a general rise in risk assets. Traders in the oil market reacted to eased tensions between the U.S. and Iran, particularly following Donald Trump's suggestion of a meeting with President Masoud Pezeshkian at the upcoming UN General Assembly.

In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin has gained 5.2%. Major altcoins saw similar increases, with TRON being the only exception, rising by less than 1%.

Source: CoinMarketCap.

The total market capitalization of digital assets has reached $2.87 trillion.

In the last day, liquidation volumes in the market approached $750 million, with approximately $648 million attributed to long positions.

Source: Coinglass.

Analyst Darkfost noted that the liquidation of nearly $400 million in short positions in Bitcoin has been a crucial driver behind the surge to $85,000.

BTC is entering a critical moment today, one that is creating doubt and putting real pressure on some investors.

That’s why I want to take a moment to walk through the current situation together, exactly as I see it through the data I work with every single day and that I’ve… pic.twitter.com/LighS2IdQ3

— Darkfost (@Darkfost_Coc) November 16, 2025

"This marks a trend reversal as it represents a breakout of the structure relative to the May peak," he added.

Technical Indicator

Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy, pointed out that Bitcoin closed last week above its 50-day moving average for the first time in nearly 10 months.

🟠 BTC CLOSES WEEK ABOVE 50-WEEK MOVING AVERAGE FOR FIRST TIME IN 45 WEEKS

Regaining the 50w MA has historically served as strong confirmation that bear market lows are “in.”

Bitcoin is up 29% in 35 days pic.twitter.com/HzKVUrxMVz

— Alex Thorn (@intangiblecoins) September 21, 2026

"Historically, recovering the 50-WMA has been a strong confirmation that bear market lows have been reached," Thorn noted.

In a research paper published in August, he indicated that in four out of five completed bear phases, after hitting this point, prices did not fall to new lows again, with the exception being the decline from 2021-2022.

Analyst Joe Consorti confirmed that closing above the 50-WMA indicates a 75% likelihood of reaching the cycle’s bottom.

"Discounting the black swan event of a COVID crash, the accuracy is 100%. The bear is defeated. Welcome (tentatively) to a bull market," he wrote.

It is worth noting that earlier in mid-September, Darkfost identified signals indicating the end of the bear phase in the behavior of short-term Bitcoin holders.