Late-night cryptocurrency chaos, over 110,000 traders liquidated, Bitcoin's predicted price slashed in half

Crypto market volatility has increased significantly over the past two days!

On January 3, Bitcoin surged to briefly stand above $90,500, then plunged in the afternoon and fell below $90,000. As of 22:50 at the time of publication, Bitcoin has once again reclaimed the $90,000 level. Multiple major cryptocurrencies collectively rose; Ethereum returned to $3,000, up more than 2%; XRP rose more than 6%; and Dogecoin rose more than 9%. According to coinglass data, more than 110,000 liquidations occurred in the past 24 hours.

On the news front, on the evening of January 3, according to Xinhua News Agency, U.S. President Trump said that the U.S. has successfully carried out a crackdown on Venezuela. Venezuelan President Maduro and his wife were “dragged out of their bedroom and taken away” during a U.S. military raid. In a statement released on the 3rd, a spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Guterres said that Guterres was deeply shocked by the recent escalation of the situation in Venezuela, and that the military action taken by the U.S. in Venezuela that day may have concerning impacts on the region.

Bitcoin sinks nearly 30% in two months

Standard Chartered sharply cuts its long-term Bitcoin price forecast

It is worth noting that, according to Caixin Global, Geoff Kendrick, Global Head of Digital Assets Research at Standard Chartered—one of Wall Street’s most steadfast Bitcoin bulls—has recently made a major downward adjustment to its forecast for this cryptocurrency.

Standard Chartered has essentially “slashed by half” its future Bitcoin price forecast across the board, with the largest declines coming in particular in 2026–2028. Kendrick said Standard Chartered expects Bitcoin to rise to $150,000 in 2026, which is only half of its prior $300,000 target.

In early October 2025, Bitcoin once surged to a historical high of about $126,000. Compared with the peak, Bitcoin has since fallen by nearly 30%.

The latest round of Bitcoin’s decline has been driven by multiple negative factors, including insufficient market liquidity, a reduced risk appetite amid unclear prospects for rate cuts, and market speculation that Strategy—the largest Bitcoin company buyer—may be forced to sell part of its holdings.

In addition, on the news front, expectations of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve have strengthened again.

In a report, Barclays’ U.S. economists said the firm maintains its forecast that the Federal Reserve will cut rates twice in 2026, with cuts of 25 basis points in March and June, respectively. They believe the risks around this baseline forecast are tilted toward a delay in the timing of rate cuts.

David Seif, Chief Economist for Developed Markets at Nomura, said in a recent interview with a reporter from 21st Century Economic Herald that “dynamic changes” in the Federal Reserve in 2026 may become even more pronounced. Nomura expects that the U.S. economy in 2026 will continue to show resilience, with real GDP projected to grow by 2.4%. Easing pressure on the labor force supply and faster acceleration of AI-led business investment will support the economy. The labor market conditions are expected to improve; after three years of slight increases, the unemployment rate by year-end will fall to 4.0%.

For the future path of U.S. monetary policy, Nomura expects that although inflation pressures triggered by the 2025 tariffs may ease, core services inflation will keep the Federal Reserve cautious. Under a newly more dovish leadership, it is expected that the Federal Reserve will cut rates once each in June and September 2026.

(Statement: The article is for reference only and does not constitute investment advice. Investors act at their own risk.)

(Editor: Wen Jing)

Keywords:

                                                            Cryptocurrency