Investing.com– Bitcoin rose from a 16-month low in Asian trade on Friday but was headed for a deep weekly decline as a broader risk-off mood, amid uncertainty over U.S. monetary policy, battered cryptocurrency prices.
The crypto remained on the backfoot after top corporate holder Strategy Inc (NASDAQ:MSTR) reported a substantially wider fourth-quarter loss on Thursday, pressured chiefly by declines in the value of its Bitcoin holdings.
Bitcoin rose 5% to $66,144.7 by 01:48 ET (06:48 GMT), recovering from a 16-month low of $60,187.0.
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The world’s largest crypto has now wiped out more than 50% from a record high hit in October, and has also erased all gains made since Trump’s election victory in late-2024.
Bitcoin heads for 16% weekly decline, third week in red
Bitcoin was headed for a third straight week of losses and was trading down nearly 16% for the week.
The crypto was battered by a broader exodus out of risky, speculative assets in recent weeks, with losses intensifying after Trump nominated Kevin Warsh as his pick for the next chairman of the Federal Reserve.
Warsh was viewed as a less dovish pick, specifically given that he has opposed the Fed’s asset buying programs. This trend could see the Fed maintain a leaner balance sheet in the long term- a scenario that is expected to tighten monetary policy and pressure speculative assets such as crypto.
Investors dumped risk-driven assets across the board following Warsh’s nomination. An extended rout in U.S. technology stocks- which crypto tends to track- also spilled over into the sector.
Strategy Q4 loss widens sharply amid Bitcoin weakness
Strategy Inc (NASDAQ:MSTR) reported a substantially bigger loss for the fourth quarter on Thursday- at $12.4 billion, compared to the prior year’s reading of $670.8 million.
The loss was fueled chiefly by sustained underperformance in Bitcoin prices since October. The crypto has largely failed to gain any substantial ground after a flash crash in late-October rattled markets.
Strategy holds 713,502 Bitcoins as of February 1, at an average cost of $54.26 billion or $76,052 per Bitcoin. With the crypto now trading below Strategy’s average price, markets grew concerned that the company may be pushed into selling some of its holdings to meet its debt obligations.
The company, which is led by Bitcoin proponent Michael Saylor, has fueled its Bitcoin purchases through a mix of debt instruments and new share issuances.
Crypto price today: altcoins also head for weekly losses
Broader crypto prices tracked a recovery in Bitcoin, but were also nursing steep losses over the past week.
World no.2 crypto Ether rose nearly 5% to $1,916.62, but was down about 22% this week.
XRP and BNB rose 7% and 3%, respectively, but were down about 20% apiece this week.
Solana was headed for a 24% weekly loss, while Cardano was down 13.5%.
Among memecoins, Dogecoin was down 13% this week, while $TRUMP was down about 23%.
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