Challenge the longest consecutive rally in 3 months! Analyst: Bitcoin enters a bull market

Bid farewell to the dull end of 2025, and the cryptocurrency market has begun 2026 with a strong rebound. Bitcoin rose over 1% during Asian trading hours on Monday, expected to mark its fifth consecutive day of gains, the longest streak since early October last year. According to CoinGecko data, Bitcoin climbed from $91,270 to $92,500 this morning (5), briefly breaking the $93,000 level during the session; mainstream competing coins also moved higher, with Ethereum, Ripple (XRP), and Solana (SOL) gaining approximately 0.7% to 1%.

Markus Thielen, founder of 10x Research and recently recognized as a top cryptocurrency analyst, stated: “Market sentiment is improving, and both Bitcoin and Ethereum are entering a bull market.” Thielen further explained that his team turned more optimistic after the options expiry at the end of December last year, citing the typical year-end “tax-loss selling” as coming to an end. As trading institutions enter the new year, they regain flexibility in capital deployment, leading to a renewed appetite for risk assets. Looking back at December’s trend, Bitcoin and the overall crypto market faced prolonged pressure, mainly because US investors sold losing positions at year-end to offset capital gains from other assets and reduce overall taxes, a common technical adjustment at year-end. As a result, Bitcoin’s overall performance in 2025 lagged behind the Nasdaq index, gold, and other precious metals, with the year closing down about 6%. In the last few weeks, its performance during North American trading hours was particularly weak. Notably, Bitcoin’s rebound coincided with geopolitical tensions triggered by the US arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, which was interpreted as a signal that cryptocurrencies are once again attracting safe-haven capital inflows. Ryan Lee, Chief Analyst at cryptocurrency exchange Bitget, pointed out: “We observed that after the US military took military action against Venezuela, multiple asset classes rose simultaneously, which is a typical ‘capital flow into quality assets.’ Safe-haven assets like gold and silver surged sharply, reflecting investors pricing in potential geopolitical risks.” Lee further analyzed that oil prices remain around $60 per barrel, helping to suppress short-term inflation pressures. However, the market has clearly started to worry about future energy supply disruptions and tightening liquidity, factors that could force the Federal Reserve (Fed) to maintain relatively high interest rates for a longer period. From a technical analysis perspective, Thielen believes that as long as Bitcoin can stay above the 21-day exponential moving average (21-day EMA), its short-term trend will remain upward.