Bitcoin Surges Back Above 80,000 US Dollars: Can It Hold?

Bitcoin Surges Back Above 80,000 US Dollars: Can It Hold?

KOMPAS.com – Bitcoin (BTC) price has once again surged past the 80,000 US dollar mark, closing above this psychological threshold for two consecutive days.

According to Yahoo Finance on Sunday (September 20, 2026), Bitcoin's price hovered around 81,228 US dollars as of September 19, 2026. Bitcoin closed at 80,875 US dollars on September 18 and 81,214 US dollars on September 19.

Although Bitcoin has reclaimed the 80,000 dollar level, this movement does not yet guarantee a sustained upward trend. The BTC price still faces selling pressure around the 82,000-83,000 dollar range.

Therefore, market focus has shifted to the 83,000 dollar mark. Bitcoin's ability to break through and close above this level will be a key indicator in assessing whether the recovery can continue.

Bitcoin's rally on September 18, 2026, was partly driven by short position liquidations.

On that trading day, Bitcoin opened at 76,349 US dollars, equal to the previous day's close. The price then soared to 81,388 US dollars before closing at 80,875 US dollars.

This roughly 6 percent daily increase coincided with the liquidation of approximately 170 million US dollars worth of short positions after Bitcoin crossed the 80,000 dollar threshold.

A short position profits from asset price declines; when the price moves against such positions and losses mount, exchanges automatically liquidate these positions.

These liquidations close short positions by buying Bitcoin on the market, which intensifies buying pressure, pushing prices higher and potentially triggering more short position liquidations.

However, the liquidation effect typically diminishes once short positions at certain levels are fully closed. To sustain the rally, Bitcoin needs fresh buying demand from the market.

In this recent movement, such demand was also evident from inflows into Bitcoin spot ETF products.

Data from SoSoValue indicates that Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded inflows totaling 592.5 million US dollars from September 17 to 18. On September 18 alone, inflows amounted to 433 million US dollars with no recorded outflows.

These inflows followed a 746 million US dollar outflow from Bitcoin spot ETFs on September 15-16.

Thus, Bitcoin's rise during this period was not only fueled by short position liquidations but also supported by capital entering Bitcoin-based investment products.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic Illustration of Bitcoin and US dollar.

After crossing 80,000 US dollars, focus has turned to the 82,000-83,000 dollar range.