Bitcoin (BTC $90,427.02) saw its “digital gold” narrative weaken on Monday as prices dropped and traders pared back expectations for a swift move to $100,000 by the end of January. The decline followed U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of new tariffs on Denmark and seven other European nations.
Trump announced on Saturday that countries opposing his plan to acquire Greenland—an autonomous Danish territory near North America—would face a 10% tariff. The European Union pushed back, pledging to defend Greenland’s sovereignty and criticizing the move as hostile to free markets and economic stability.
The geopolitical tension rattled crypto sentiment. On the decentralized prediction platform Polymarket, the probability of bitcoin reaching $100,000 fell to 27%, down from nearly 50% on Friday and 72% on Jan. 15.
Bitcoin briefly dipped toward $92,000 early Monday, according to CoinDesk data. The selloff spread across crypto markets, with CoinDesk indexes tracking memecoins, metaverse, computing, DeFi, and culture & entertainment all dropping more than 7%. Asian and European stocks also fell, while gold surged to record highs, reflecting a classic flight-to-safety move.
The decline underscores bitcoin’s ongoing correlation with equities, despite its “digital gold” branding as a potential safe-haven asset.
“Bitcoin has fallen for a fifth consecutive day, retreating from November highs while struggling to hold above $92,000,” said Samer Hasn, senior market analyst at XS.com. He attributed the drop to profit-taking and a broader risk-off shift amid rising U.S. political and trade tensions.
On a brighter note, bitcoin and ether spot ETFs drew $1.4 billion and $500 million in inflows last week, marking their strongest performance since October. Large holders, or “whales,” holding 1,000–10,000 BTC, increased activity by 28% over the past week, according to BGeometrics.
Analysts note that sustaining these trends will be crucial for a meaningful rebound. Laser Digital said near-term price action will depend on U.S.–EU tariff developments, lingering geopolitical risks in the Middle East, and key upcoming events including the Davos forum, U.S. GDP and core personal consumption expenditures data, and a Supreme Court ruling on Trump’s tariffs.
