Bitcoin Slips 0.06% on Oct 26, 2026 as Traders Await Fed Decision

Bitcoin slipped 0.06% to $80,008.79 over the UTC day of October 26, 2026, according to Coinbase daily data, after dipping as low as $79,255.00 as traders cut leverage ahead of the Federal Reserve's decision on October 28.

Data as of: Coinbase Exchange daily candles for the UTC day of October 26, 2026 (00:00 to 24:00 UTC); CoinGecko global data at 00:07 UTC on October 27. The latest confirmed ETF flow data covers October 23.

Key takeaways

• Bitcoin fell $44.37 (−0.06%) to $80,008.79 on Coinbase, trading between $79,255.00 and $80,710.04 during the UTC day.
• Ether fell $6.41 (−0.28%) to $2,320.34 after touching $2,290.00, according to Coinbase.
• XRP was the strongest of the large coins in our table, rising 0.95% to $1.31, while solana fell 0.46% to $100.76.
• Bitcoin dominance fell to 59.42% at 00:07 UTC on October 27 from 59.98% a day earlier, CoinGecko data show.
• PANews, citing CoinGlass, reported $196 million in 24-hour futures liquidations on October 26, with long positions accounting for $128 million.

Session recap

Monday brought much more trading but little net change. Bitcoin opened the UTC day at $80,053.16 on Coinbase, fell to $79,255.00, recovered to $80,710.04 and closed just above $80,000. For the wider picture, see Asian and global markets today and our October 25 crypto brief, which covers the quiet Sunday after Saturday's slide below $80,000.

Changes are calculated from Coinbase's previous UTC daily closes on October 25: bitcoin $80,053.16, ether $2,326.75, solana $101.23 and XRP $1.2946 (October 26 XRP close: $1.3069). Dominance is compared with CoinGecko's 59.98% reading at 00:13 UTC on October 26. CoinGecko valued the total crypto market at $2.70 trillion at 00:07 UTC on October 27, with ether's share at 10.47% and 24-hour trading volume at $71.41 billion. Coinbase recorded 6,746.32 BTC traded on its BTC-USD market during the day, compared with 2,077.13 BTC on Sunday.

Other price feeds tell the same story. CoinDesk's index showed bitcoin at $79,823.14 at 20:11 UTC (4:11 p.m. EDT), and Pintu reported $79,456.75 at 03:46 UTC, close to the early low on Coinbase.

What drove it

Waiting for the Fed

Most reports linked the day's caution to the Fed's October 27–28 meeting. Coinspeaker, in an article republished by Yahoo Finance, said Polymarket priced a 94.5% chance that rates stay unchanged and a 5.5% chance of another hike, and that traders were looking for hints about December. The Fed raised its target range to 3.75%–4.00% in September and consumer inflation stood at 3.7% year over year, Finance Magnates reported. Nexo's Iliya Kalchev noted that CME FedWatch still implied about a 75% chance of a December hike, the same report said. For background, see how Fed rate decisions affect bitcoin.

Stocks, yields and oil

Analysts described the recent weakness as part of a wider move away from risk. Lorris Beziers of Tesseract Group told Finance Magnates the drop looked like equity risk spilling into bitcoin "rather than a fresh crypto-specific shock." The same report said the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.6% on October 22 on worries about funding AI spending. Coinspeaker put the 10-year Treasury yield at 4.99% and Brent crude near $110 a barrel, levels that keep inflation concerns alive.

Leverage

Forced selling picked up again on Monday. PANews, citing CoinGlass, reported $196 million in liquidations over 24 hours: $128 million from long positions and $67.57 million from shorts. Bitcoin positions accounted for $53.17 million and ether for $48.36 million, and the largest single liquidation was a $6.97 million ETH-USDT position on Binance. An earlier KuCoin snapshot put the 24-hour total at $119 million. Totals vary with the time window; our guide to crypto liquidations explains why.

ETF flows

The most recent confirmed US spot bitcoin ETF data still shows last week's withdrawals: $635.6 million on October 22 and $137.9 million on October 23, according to Finance Magnates and Coinspeaker, led by BlackRock's iShares and Fidelity funds. Farside Investors had not yet posted a full figure for October 26 when this brief was written, and early reports disagreed, so we do not include one. Our explainer on bitcoin ETF flows covers how these figures are compiled.

Altcoins

Ether, solana and bitcoin all ended slightly lower, while XRP gained 0.95%. CoinGecko data show both bitcoin's and ether's share of total market value falling overnight. The cause of the shift in dominance has not been confirmed.

Political & policy watch

• Federal Reserve. The FOMC statement is due on October 28 at 18:00 UTC (14:00 ET), according to the Fed's calendar, followed by a press conference with Chair Kevin Warsh, Coinspeaker reported.
• Middle East and energy. Middle East tensions have kept Brent above $100 a barrel, Finance Magnates and Coinspeaker reported. On October 24, President Trump said the US could strike Iran or reach a deal, Anadolu Agency reported. No strike had been reported by the end of October 26.
• US stablecoin rules. The OCC's final rule under the GENIUS Act takes effect on January 18, 2027, CoinDesk reported.
• US elections. The November 3 midterms will shape the next Congress and the outlook for crypto market-structure legislation. Wincent's Paul Howard expects bitcoin to stay in a range until then, Finance Magnates reported.

What to watch next

• October 27 (Tuesday): The FOMC meeting begins. ETF flow data for Monday's US session is expected.
• October 28 (Wednesday), 18:00 UTC: FOMC statement, followed by the chair's press conference.
• October 29 (Thursday), 12:30 UTC: US personal income and outlays for September, including the PCE price index, and the advance estimate of third-quarter GDP, per the BEA release schedule. Coinbase and Strategy are also scheduled to report earnings that day, according to Coinspeaker.
• October 30 (Friday), 08:00 UTC: Monthly bitcoin options expiry covering about 135,700 BTC, roughly $10.9 billion, according to Coinspeaker.
• November 1: US clocks move back one hour, so US markets will open at 14:30 UTC from November 2.
• November 3: US midterm elections.

Risk checklist for readers

• Central bank days are volatile. Prices can swing sharply around the Fed statement and press conference, in both directions.
• Rate expectations differ by source. Polymarket and CME FedWatch measure different things and can disagree; note which one a figure comes from.
• Liquidation data depends on timing. Compare 24-hour totals only when they come from the same provider and time window.
• ETF flows lag and get revised. Daily flow figures describe the previous US trading day, and early estimates often differ between providers.
• Options expiries can add volatility. Large expiries can affect hedging activity in the days before the deadline.
• Leverage cuts both ways. Borrowed positions magnify losses and can be closed automatically after small price moves.
• Exchange prices differ. Closes vary slightly across exchanges and data aggregators, so check which source a figure comes from.

This article is for information only and is not investment advice.