Bitcoin’s price fell below $95,000 on Feb. 12 after U.S. inflation data for January came in higher than expected, shaking both crypto and traditional markets.
Bitcoin’s price fell below $95,000 on Feb. 12 after U.S. inflation data for January came in higher than expected, shaking both crypto and traditional markets. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.5% for the month, the biggest increase in a year, exceeding forecasts of 0.3%. Year-over-year CPI reached 3.0%, slightly above the expected 2.9%. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy, increased by 0.4% for the month and 3.3% annually, both higher than projected.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that the central bank is in no hurry to cut interest rates, citing strong economic performance and inflation trends. His comments came a day after President Donald Trump urged rate cuts on Truth Social, linking them to his proposed tariffs. Trump has frequently criticized the Fed and Powell, blaming them for inflation and poor banking regulations.
Investor sentiment toward Bitcoin turned negative, with data from Stocktwits showing low message volume. The total crypto market lost 3.7% in the last 24 hours, and altcoins followed Bitcoin’s decline. Ethereum fell 2.7% to $2,584.79, XRP dropped 3.1% to $2.37, Solana lost 3.7%, and Cardano slipped 3.5%. Dogecoin declined 2.4%, while $TRUMP, a token linked to Trump, dropped 5.4%. Some traders expect further volatility with upcoming Producer Price Index (PPI) data.
Crypto analytics firm Steno Research warned that rising inflation could create a challenging environment for risk assets like Bitcoin, as higher interest rates tend to strengthen the U.S. dollar and make non-yielding assets less attractive. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs revealed in SEC filings that it had significantly increased its exposure to Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs in late 2024. The firm’s investments in Ethereum ETFs surged by 2,000% to $476 million, while Bitcoin ETF holdings grew 114% to $1.52 billion. Most of its funds were allocated to BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), Fidelity’s Ethereum Fund (FETH), and iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), while it exited positions in Bitcoin ETFs from Bitwise, WisdomTree, and Invesco-Galaxy.
World Liberty Financial (WLF), a Trump-linked crypto firm, announced a strategic token reserve to stabilize major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. The firm stated that the reserve would help manage market volatility and support decentralized finance projects. Trump and his associates reportedly hold a significant stake in WLF’s parent company.
Market analysts noted that the inflation increase wasn’t entirely unexpected due to seasonal price adjustments. Coin Bureau’s Nic Puckrin argued that Trump’s trade tariffs shouldn’t be blamed, suggesting they could have a disinflationary effect. Powell said the Fed would monitor key economic data, including the PCE index on Feb. 28 and unemployment figures on March 7, before making policy decisions.
Bitcoin, which has been trading between $90,000 and $109,000 for over two months, has more than doubled in a year but remains up just 1% in 2025. Despite the drop, it was last trading at $97,250.24.
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