Why is the Bitcoin Price Down Today (January 20th, 2026)

Bitcoin’s price dropped by 2.6% in the past 24 hours, reaching a low of around $90,600.

With this, the cryptocurrency has erased all its gains from January 14th and is once again trading at the levels we saw on the 12th, as shown in the chart below.

The price instability stems mostly from expanding international trade uncertainty, as Donald Trump continues applying pressure regarding Greenland.

Crypto Markets Suffer

First things first, it’s important to note that Bitcoin is far from the only cryptocurrency in the red today.

In fact, out of the top 100 coins by means of total market capitalization, only a handful are trading in the green.

Ethereum lost 3.5%, XRP is down by almost 3%, SOL declined by 3.7%, TRX by 3.2%, and so forth. The total capitalization is currently $3.16 trillion, with a $109 billion daily trading volume across the board, which is relatively average over the past 3 months.

The market sentiment has returned to “Fear (32),” indicative of the indecisiveness and uncertainty that have gripped the crypto industry over the past few months.

But Why?

Well, the past 24 hours have been eventful in geopolitics, which seems to be having a direct impact on crypto prices. Bitcoin is widely considered to be a risk-on asset, and investors don’t seem to be feeling too risky right now. This is further evidenced by the rising prices of gold. As we reported earlier, gold prices soared to a new all-time high above $4,700/oz.

Just yesterday, the POTUS issued an official White House statement with a threatening tone, suggesting that the US will continue to attempt to establish control over Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark.

China has responded, urging Trump to stop using them as a “pretext to pursue selfish interest,” while the POTUS himself confirmed that NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte will be meeting with him in Davos.

So, why the uncertainty? Well, Greenland is part of an official member of the European Union and NATO. The US is downright threatening to take control of the country, and investors are worried of the potential implications this might have on international relationships. The US is also part of NATO, but Trump himself has said that he intends to put US interests “first,” saying:

He literally posted a picture of himself planting the US flag in Greenland:

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has also reached out to Trump, and the uncertainty is more than evident:

What’s Next?

The Kobeissi Letter has done a step-by-step breakdown of what they think will go down, and so far, it seems to be playing out.

According to the analysts, President Trump should soon start posting that they are working toward a solution with the leaders of the countries that were recently targeted by the tariffs. They believe that there will be expedited discussions regarding a trade deal for Greenland, and once announced, markets will hit a new record high.

They believe that the current tariffs are yet to take effect from February 1st, which indicates that:

Whether or not this comes to fruition remains to be seen, but if one thing is certain is that turbulent times are ahead of us, so plan accordingly.

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