A government shutdown looks set to take place in the US, with issues such as funding being the key disagreement. This must be resolved by midnight on Friday. Yet as winter storms threaten to close major parts of the United States, it seems unlikely the end of January will be a great one for the country. This could have a huge impact on Bitcoin’s prices, as key economic data pieces are delayed or cancelled.
Bitcoins Current Situation
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is on track for a loss that has taken place over four consecutive months. This has not been seen since between 2018 and 2019, when a record six straight months of losses came in back-to-back months. There is still a week of trading left, yet at the time of writing on January 26th 2026, the bitcoin price in INR on Binance is at 8061769. It has seen a very rough 36% decline over its high in early October, with losses in November and December.
None of this has been helped by the possibility of a fresh shutdown in the United States government. This is being considered due to funding deadlines and budget allocations, and it could have a huge impact on economic stability and federal operations.
Even in 2022, when the market collapsed, it still did not produce more than three months of losses. This happened when quantitative tightening occurred, and there were major issues within the crypto market itself. At this point, prices in USD went from $69,000 to $15,000.
Crucially, government shutdowns delay and cancel key pieces of economic data. These can include information on prices, inflation and employment. It can also put the brakes on key pieces of regulatory information, such as the CLARITY Act. This generally means people tend to stay away from risk assets such as cryptocurrency. Binance already noted this, and how investors are instead turning to assets such as precious metals. They noted that flows favour assets with rigid production demand, while traditional hedges like gold and silver rise but lag the industrial complex in momentum.
Further Factors Influencing Bitcoin’s Prices
Even without a shutdown, the US economy in general is a huge factor influencing the price of cryptocurrency. Inflation concerns remain, with a decision by the Fed also due. If interest rates go up, this is typically a bigger boost for safe-haven assets. This could further push precious metals at the expense of riskier assets like cryptocurrency. Binance noted that even with the broader equity lift, BTC/majors struggle versus commodities that have clearer “structural” demand. They also point out that the 2026 bull case shifts to sovereign and strategic-reserve accumulation as a potential new inelastic buyer base.
The results of this were that over the weekend, the bitcoin price dropped below the USD $87,000 mark. More than $600 million in short-term trades were liquidated, with around $226 million belonging to Bitcoin and $204 million in Ether. In both short and long positions, $765.71 million was liquidated.
One crucial factor to look at is the Fear & Greed Index. Created by CNN, it is a measure of seven market indicators which gauge how people view certain aspects. This currently sits at a rating fear for market momentum, which signals extreme fear. Put and call options are also at extreme fear. This points to overselling, which means that further losses could be around.
The Turn to Precious Metals
Amidst these US risks and wider global ones, gold has surged as bitcoin has fallen. It pushed past $5,100 an ounce on Monday with spot gold prices adding 2.4%. This highlighted its safe haven status as geopolitical tensions mount. Silver also saw a huge rally, which took it from $107.9 per ounce and a rise of 4.9%. Part of this may have been down to its use as an industrial tool.
Bitcoins’ dip at the expense of metals has two main outcomes. On one hand, it could be viewed as the inherent volatility in cryptocurrency raising its head once more. All those who said it was a digital form of gold have been sorely mistaken. This is true of the many crypto treasury firms now trading well below their NAV price. For a time, people forgot that crypto is inherently volatile, and many may pay the price.
Others view it as the perfect buying moment. Extreme fear often comes before the market bottoms out. If an investor is looking for long-term exposure to cryptocurrency, then this could be the ideal opportunity to jump on board. However, if anything can be taken from this, it is that bitcoin and crypto remain volatile and must be treated as such. This involves knowing the dangers of risky assets and any investment with them.