“Bitcoin to $170K: Reaganomics 2.0 Will Send BTC Soaring in 2026”

One figure represents decades of trading experience. The other is labeled “the individual with the highest IQ in the world” based on standardized tests. What are their predictions for Bitcoin’s price in the second week of December?

Interestingly, their views appear to clash. Their opposite perspectives highlight how even those with exceptional experience or intelligence can interpret the market in very different ways.

Peter Brandt – Bitcoin Is Retesting Before Returning to a Downtrend

Peter Brandt, a legendary trader with decades spent in commodity and equity markets, is warning about a bleak scenario for Bitcoin.

In his latest Bitcoin analysis, he argues that BTC is retesting a broadening top pattern. This formation shows rising highs and falling lows, often signaling a weakening uptrend.

Brandt has repeatedly warned about a dead cat bounce scenario for Bitcoin. His chart markings suggest that BTC might push as high as $102,000 before possibly correcting toward $58,840 in the near term.

His perspective acts as a cold reminder from past cycles: the market does not reward naïveté, and classical technical models remain reliable guides amid relentless volatility.

YoungHoon Kim – Manipulation Has Passed, and BTC Is Ready for a New ATH

In contrast, YoungHoon Kim — whose verified IQ score is 276 — views the situation through the lens of game theory.

In his latest assessment, Kim argues that the current dip represents temporary manipulation by market whales. He believes it could fade within a week. After that, Bitcoin may move toward a new all-time high.

Bull Theory, an X account focused on crypto analysis, provides supporting evidence for Kim’s view.

Recent price action shows Bitcoin dropping to $87,700 before quickly rebounding to $91,200. This rapid dump-and-pump sequence, completed within four hours, reflects typical low-liquidity weekend manipulation aimed at wiping out both long and short leveraged positions.

Between the two perspectives—one shaped by decades of technical pattern mastery and the other based on reasoning about crypto market behavior—the answer may soon become clear during the second week of December.

These predictions emerge as the FOMC meeting approaches. Historical data shows a pattern during the last two rate cuts (September 17 and October 29):

• Bitcoin tends to rise a few days before the announcement,
• Bounce slightly right after the decision,
• And then drop sharply afterward.

The market may soon reveal which outlook proves correct.

Major US cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is returning to India after a two-year absence from the market.

Coinbase has resumed app registrations in India as it prepares to roll out local fiat on-ramps in 2026, Coinbase APAC director John O’Loghlen announced at India Blockchain Week (IBW), according to a Sunday report by TechCrunch.

Coinbase’s return to India comes more than two years after it ceased local services in September 2023, following a troubled debut of its local exchange launched in 2022.

“We had millions of customers in India, historically, and we took a very clear stance to off-board those customers entirely from overseas entities, where they were domiciled and regulated. Because we wanted to kind of burn the boats, have a clean slate here,” O’Loghlen said.

Crypto-to-crypto trades available immediately

As Coinbase resumes customer onboarding in India, users can immediately execute crypto-to-crypto trades, according to a report by TechCrunch.

The exchange initially began onboarding users through an early-access program in October, around the time it hired Karan Malik as its India marketing lead.

After its sharp decline in October and November, Ethereum has stabilized, finally, and the chart’s structure is starting to resemble the early phases of a trend reversal rather than a straightforward relief bounce. With increasing momentum, the price is moving toward the 20-day moving average after regaining the $3,100 mark.

Breaking down whales' positions

The whale positioning occurring off the chart, however, is the most remarkable development. Unanimously, some of the ecosystem’s most intelligent, well-behaved whales are long on ETH and getting bigger. BitcoinOG, a trader with $105 million in total PNL, is holding 54,277 ETH, or about $169.48 million. "Anti-CZ" whale is long 62,156 ETH, a position worth roughly $194 million, and has $58.8 million in total PNL. Another steadily profitable entity with $16.3 million in PNL, pension-usdt.eth, has taken a long for 20,000 ETH, or about $62.5 million. Chart by TradingView">

According to the short-term structure, ETH is grinding upward from its base of $2,800, forming higher lows and stabilizing above earlier breakdown levels. The 50-day and 100-day moving averages continue to be strong points of resistance, but the decline’s slope is becoming less steep. A run toward $3,800, and eventually the psychological $4,000 barrier, are possible if ETH can break through the $3,350-$3,450 range.

Ethereum's potential target

This is the point at which whale positioning becomes important: significant accumulation at these levels indicates that they may eventually reclaim the $3,500-$4,000 range, which is the threshold required to restart a macro uptrend. The path to $5,000 becomes feasible if the price breaks through — not because of hype but because the market will finally unite behind well-funded, highly accurate players.

As whale conviction permeates broader market behavior, investors should expect increased volatility, stronger upside attempts and a change in sentiment. Although Ethereum has not reached $5,000 yet, the foundation for that run is currently being established.

Japan, the world’s second-largest economy, saw its 20-year government bond yield rise to 2.947%, the highest since 1998. With debt piling up and borrowing costs climbing rapidly, Japan may be forced to bring hundreds of billions of dollars back home. If that happens, U.S. bonds, Tether, and even Bitcoin could be affected.

Experts predict the Bitcoin price could drop 5–8% if Japanese bond yields stay above 2.90%.

Japan’s Debt Trap Is Reaching Its Breaking Point

Japan carries one of the heaviest debt loads on Earth, 263% of its GDP, nearly $10.2 trillion in total. 

For decades, they managed this only because interest rates were near zero. But now, with inflation staying above 2% and the Bank of Japan lifting short-term rates to 0.5%, the cost of borrowing is exploding.

At these new yield levels, Japan’s interest bill could jump from $162 billion to $280 billion over the next decade. That means nearly 38% of government income would go on paying interest. 

No big country has ever handled debt this big without facing serious problems.

Why This Forces Japan Toward Selling U.S. Treasuries

Japan is the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt, holding over $1.13 trillion in Treasuries. But rising Japanese bond yields now make U.S. bonds unprofitable after currency risk. This means Japanese investors will start coming back home.

Economic models predict that up to $500 billion could leave global markets in the next 18 months, pushing U.S. borrowing costs higher even without a Fed rate hike.

Therefore, Japan’s growing debt problem isn’t just Japan’s problem anymore. It could impact global markets.

How Bitcoin and Tether Are at Risk?

For years, people borrowed cheap money in Japan, about $1.2 trillion, and used it to buy things like stocks, crypto, and other investments. Now, if Japan sells U.S. bonds, others may follow.

If U.S. bond prices drop, Tether, which holds a lot of Treasuries, will come under pressure. And if Tether falls, Bitcoin usually falls too.

We’ve seen this before, when in July 2024, a BOJ rate hike caused an 18% Bitcoin drop to $53,000, causing nearly $3 billion in value to be wiped out from the crypto market 

Even recently, when BOJ just hinted at a rate hike, Bitcoin fell from $92,000 to $83,832.

Right now, if Japanese yields remain above 2.90%, Bitcoin could move down toward the $87,000 support. However, Trump’s pro-crypto stance and ETF inflows provide buffers, potentially limiting losses to 5-8%.

As of now, Bitcoin is trading near $91,728, about 8% below its earlier highs, with the total crypto market cap at $3.1 trillion.

Bitcoin is trading at a pivotal level that analysts say could determine whether the market holds its broader uptrend or slips back toward spring lows.

Key Takeaways:

• Bitcoin is sitting on a crucial Fibonacci support level, with a breakdown risking a drop toward the April lows near $76,000.
• A weekend leverage flush pushed BTC below $88,000 before a sharp rebound.
• Traders now await the Fed meeting and key US economic data.

In , crypto trader Daan Crypto Trades said the 0.382 Fibonacci retracement zone is the line bulls must defend, warning that a breakdown could send BTC back to April levels near $76,000.

“It’s also pretty much the last major support before testing the April lows again, which would break this high time frame market structure,” he said.Bitcoin Dips Below $88K in Weekend Leverage Flush, Analyst Says

Over the weekend, Bitcoin briefly dipped below $88,000 during another round of leverage washouts before rebounding above $91,500.

Analyst “Bull Theory” described the move as typical low-liquidity weekend manipulation aimed at flushing both longs and shorts.

The market now turns its attention to this week’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting, where a 0.25% rate cut is widely expected.

BREAKING: Bitcoin dumped $2,000 from $89.7k to $87.7k and liquidated $171 million worth of longs.But then it pumped $3,500 from $87.7k to $91.2k and liquidated $75 million worth of shorts. All this happened in the last 4 hours.This is another example of manipulation on the… — Bull Theory (@BullTheoryio)

Still, crypto markets have cooled since the October cut, as Fed Chair Jerome Powell emphasized a data-dependent path rather than a predictable easing cycle.

Markus Thielen of 10x Research expect a similar tone this week, cautious and potentially hawkish, keeping pressure on risk assets.

With ETF inflows softening and trading volumes thinning into December, Thielen said upside participation remains limited, while volatility compression leaves BTC more vulnerable to downside moves in the near term.

“Bulls will point to the Treasury General Account rebuild, the end of Quantitative Tightening, and looming rate cuts as a liquidity windfall for Bitcoin,” Thielen wrote.

He added that hypothetical macro tailwinds are “irrelevant if the underlying message lacks conviction and the market structure fails to support a sustained move.”

Nick Ruck of LVRG Research said upcoming U.S. jobs data and inflation figures may prove just as influential.

If they reinforce expectations for continued easing, he believes renewed liquidity inflows could fuel a broader recovery across digital assets.Bitcoin’s Rising “Liveliness” Metric Signals Hidden Bull-Market Strength

As reported, a key on-chain indicator known as “liveliness” is climbing again, even as Bitcoin’s price action remains subdued.

Analysts say the divergence suggests renewed underlying demand, with dormant coins moving at levels not seen in years, a sign that long-term holders may be re-entering the market.

The indicator’s steady rise points to a major rotation of capital beneath the surface despite cautious sentiment.

Liveliness measures the balance between coins being transacted and those being held, weighted by age. It tends to rise during bull markets as older coins move at higher prices, reflecting fresh inflows and greater conviction.

Last week, Bitfinex said the market is showing “seller exhaustion” following a period of heavy deleveraging and panic-driven exits by short-term holders.

“The combination of extreme deleveraging, capitulation among short-term holders, and early signs of seller exhaustion has created the conditions for a stabilisation phase and a relief bounce,” the firm wrote.

Chainlink price is trading in a tight price range after a strong recovery from recent lows, placing the asset at a decisive zone where momentum is likely to expand. Price has repeatedly defended the same demand area, while sellers have failed to push LINK into a sustained breakdown—often a sign of an upcoming directional move. If buyers regain control, a rally toward the $20–$22 zone could unfold. However, failure to hold current levels may expose LINK to a sharp pullback toward $12–$10.

Chainlink Price Analysis

Chainlink’s price has shown notable resilience since rebounding from the $11 region, which has now emerged as a critical support zone for bulls to defend. Despite elevated intraday volatility, sustained buying momentum has failed to push LINK decisively above $15, keeping the price trapped within a narrow range. This stalemate, however, appears deliberate rather than weak. Price fluctuations are gradually compressing while trading activity remains stable, often signaling quiet accumulation beneath the surface.

The current market structure points toward an imminent breakout, though the broader technical picture remains mixed.