Bitcoin Reclaims $80,000 Ahead of Fed Decision as Galaxy Calls the Bear Market Over

Bitcoin pushed back above $80,000 on Wednesday, October 28, climbing nearly 2% in Asian trading to just under $81,000 after sliding toward $79,000 over the weekend. The recovery capped a steadier Tuesday session in which bitcoin closed at $80,795, up 0.8%, after trading between $79,400 and $81,150. Ether added about 1% to roughly $2,347, total crypto market capitalization recovered to around $2.67 trillion, and breadth turned positive, with 28 of the 50 largest assets rising. The day’s standout was Zcash, up 6–8% to about $1,320, followed by Hyperliquid’s HYPE token near $81, XRP and Dogecoin up roughly 3% each, and Solana around $102.

The bounce arrived with a high-profile endorsement. Galaxy Digital told investors that now is the time to accumulate bitcoin, arguing that the bear market ended in June and that the market has entered the accumulation phase that has preceded every previous advance. Galaxy’s head of research, Alex Thorn, pointed to a likely June bottom below $58,000, bitcoin’s move back above its 50-week moving average, lighter selling pressure and rising US government debt as reasons for confidence. Institutional flows gave the call some backing: US spot bitcoin ETFs drew about $110.3 million on October 26, led by BlackRock’s IBIT, after roughly $773.5 million left the funds across October 22–23.

Not everyone is convinced. Analytics firm Glassnode flagged that large traders on Hyperliquid turned net short for the first time since bitcoin rallied off its June lows — a reminder that the same price level can look like opportunity to one group and a selling opportunity to another. The recovery is also fragile in a mechanical sense: a large batch of bitcoin options contracts expires on October 30, and expiry weeks often amplify moves in either direction. The honest read is that $80,000 is less a verdict than a battleground, defended for weeks now and still contested.

The referee in this dispute is the Federal Reserve, which announces its decision later on Wednesday. Futures markets put the chance of a hold at about 91%, so the rate itself is unlikely to surprise anyone; what matters is Chair Kevin Warsh’s press conference and any signal about a December hike. Markets still price roughly one increase before year-end and further tightening in 2027, and that outlook has kept the dollar firm and Treasury yields near 5% — a backdrop that historically squeezes risk assets like crypto. A hawkish tilt could send bitcoin straight back below $80,000; a softer tone could give the Galaxy thesis room to run.

What to watch next: whether $80,000 holds through the Fed announcement and into Friday’s options expiry, whether ETF inflows continue after the October 26 bounce, and the two levels traders are now watching above — $85,000 as the first recovery target and $87,000 as the line a sustained break above would confirm buyers are back in control. If the market weakens instead, technicians point to $77,585 (the 365-day moving average), $74,041 (the realized price) and $73,028 (the 200-day average) as the next floors. For readers still learning how these levels work, our free forex course covers support, resistance and risk management, and the forex tools page has position-size calculators for planning trades around volatile events like this. (Not financial advice.)