Bitcoin has reached an important milestone in history—17 years since the creation of the Genesis Block. Looking back to January 3, 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto mined the first block, Block 0, which rewarded 50 bitcoins. Interestingly, this block embedded the headline from The Times on that day, becoming a permanent record of the background of that era. To this day, this original transaction remains one of the most sacred symbols in the crypto world.
In terms of market dynamics, recent geopolitical events have caused waves in the crypto space. The US military's actions against Venezuela triggered international tensions, causing Bitcoin's price to briefly dip below $90,000, but it quickly rebounded and fluctuated around that level. Analysts believe that if Bitcoin can maintain its position above the 21-day moving average, it may continue to rise in January. This resilience also reflects market participants' confidence in the long-term trend.
Speaking of the long term, several leading institutions have recently issued market outlooks for 2026. Fidelity believes the crypto market is entering a new paradigm, expecting more country-level Bitcoin purchases. Although the four-year cycle characteristics have not fully faded, short-term investors should remain cautious, while long-term investors still have opportunities. VanEck's view is somewhat conservative—they believe the downside for Bitcoin is limited, and 2026 is more likely to be a year of consolidation. They recommend investors allocate 1%-3% of their portfolio to Bitcoin through dollar-cost averaging.
Data at the infrastructure level is also impressive. The US spot Bitcoin ETF's cumulative trading volume surpassed $2 trillion on January 2, taking only 8 months to grow from $1 trillion to $2 trillion, indicating rapid growth. On that day, the net inflow of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs reached $645.6 million, with BlackRock's IBIT maintaining about 70% market share. These figures reflect the increasing recognition of institutional funds towards crypto assets.
Additionally, the Based platform announced it will launch its token, BASED, in Q1 2026, further expanding options for market participants. Meanwhile, Bitcoin had already attracted over $1.2 trillion in attention and capital inflows by 2025, further confirming the market's reassessment of this asset class.