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Policy

Spot Demand Helps Bitcoin Reclaim The $81,000 Mark

Bitcoin has just marked a new reversal. A few days after a drop below 75000 dollars, the leading crypto rebounded to 81636 dollars, its highest level since September 4. Indeed, this recovery

AnonymousCryptoCompass newsroom
September 19, 2026
4 min read
NEWS
Spot Demand Helps Bitcoin Reclaim The $81,000 Mark
CryptoCompass editorial visual for policy coverage.

Bitcoin has just marked a new reversal. A few days after a drop below 75000 dollars, the leading crypto rebounded to 81636 dollars, its highest level since September 4. Indeed, this recovery comes after a week marked by the failure of the CLARITY Act, Federal Reserve decisions, and new regulatory signals from Washington. Behind this increase, another phenomenon grabbed attention: the return of spot demand was accompanied by a massive liquidation of short positions.

In brief

  • Bitcoin rebounds to $81636 after dipping below $75000.
  • The rise triggers $238 million in short liquidations on BTC.
  • US spot Bitcoin ETFs see about $154 million in daily inflows.
  • The CFTC sends crypto market rule proposals to the White House.
  • The SEC may follow a parallel administrative route.

Bitcoin regains its highest level since September 4

After trading between 76000 and 77000 dollars, bitcoin saw a new acceleration this Friday morning. It thus surpassed around 78350 dollars, before continuing up to 81636 dollars. This intraday peak represents its highest level since September 4. Currently, BTC is above 80900 dollars, up more than 5% in the past twenty-four hours. Its market capitalization rose from 1540 billion to 1620 billion dollars.

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Earlier this week, bitcoin had fallen below 75000 dollars after the failure of the CLARITY Act vote. Pessimism was already largely priced in by the market when the FOMC raised its rates by 25 basis points. Thus, BTC was still stuck at 76000 dollars before Friday’s movement quickly changed the trading dynamics.

Several levels allow measuring the magnitude of this reversal in a few hours :

  • $81238, the intraday peak reached on Friday ;
  • More than 5% increase over twenty-four hours ;
  • $1620 billion in market capitalization, compared to $1540 billion previously.

Short position liquidations amplify the move

Bears got caught off guard by this rise. Thus, nearly $238 million in short bitcoin positions were liquidated within twenty-four hours, compared to only $6 million in long positions. Across the entire crypto market, short liquidations exceeded $470 million, versus just over $57 million for long positions.

Such an imbalance gives an idea of the intensity of this movement. This rise was amplified by forced buybacks while the market was already coming out of a deleveraging phase. Lacie Zhang, research analyst at Bitget Wallet, believes that bitcoin benefits from a global move back to risk, as “oil and long-term US Treasury yields relax”.

She also specifies the role of short position buybacks. Leverage, largely cleaned earlier this month, would have left a market more sensitive to the return of spot buying.

The CFTC and spot ETFs support the climate shift

This rebound is not only due to liquidations. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has sent rule proposals concerning the crypto market to the White House. After the Senate bill blockage, the CFTC intends to use the powers granted by existing laws.

As for the SEC, it should follow a parallel administrative path. This sequence therefore reveals a shift of regulatory action towards executive agencies after the legislative process failed in Congress.

Another support comes from spot demand. Indeed, Lacie Zhang mentions nearly $154 million in daily inflows into US Bitcoin ETFs. She also connects the movement to the easing of oil and long-term Treasury yields.

These elements provide the rebound with a base distinct from a simple speculative move. We thus observe a combination of spot demand, leverage reduction, and regulatory catalyst.

This return above $80000 therefore places bitcoin out of reach of sellers. The continuation of this move will depend on the persistence of inflows into spot ETFs, maintaining contained leverage, and the concrete outcome of CFTC and SEC initiatives.