Bitcoin entered September under mounting pressure after closing August on a decisively bearish note, reinforcing concerns that the world’s largest cryptocurrency may soon test the critical $100,000 level. Despite record adoption, expanding corporate treasuries, and headline-grabbing events like Bitcoin Asia in Hong Kong, BTC has slipped steadily from its August highs, leaving traders questioning whether momentum is shifting decisively to the bears.
Markets Reverse After All-Time Highs
Mid-August saw Bitcoin set a fresh all-time high just above $124,000, driven by a wave of institutional inflows and treasury acquisitions. But the rally quickly unraveled. By the end of the month, BTC had notched three consecutive weekly declines, closing near the lows and confirming a shift in market sentiment.
Technical signals point to further downside pressure. The weekly Moving Average Convergence-Divergence (MACD) chart flashed a bearish crossover, while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) slipped to its weakest reading since April, hovering just above neutral territory at 50. Together, these indicators suggest that sellers hold the upper hand as September begins.
Bitcoin Asia: A Market in Transition
The downturn coincided with Bitcoin Asia 2025 in Hong Kong, an event that underscored how far the ecosystem has moved from its cypherpunk roots. Once the domain of hackers and self-custody advocates, the stage this year was dominated by corporate treasury firms, political figures, and financial engineers.
Strategy and Metaplanet, two of the most aggressive corporate buyers of Bitcoin, headlined the event as they continue to raise billions through equity and debt issuance to expand their BTC holdings. More than 200 companies are now pursuing similar strategies, vacuuming capital markets for cheap fiat to convert into Bitcoin.
Yet the irony was not lost on attendees: as speakers extolled the virtues of Bitcoin as the ultimate hedge against fiat money, BTC’s price drifted steadily downward during the conference — from $118,204, where Nakamoto executed a $679 million purchase, to around $111,000, before plunging below $108,000.
Technical Picture: Bears in Control
From a technical perspective, the near-term outlook hinges on whether buyers can defend the $104,000–$105,000 zone, a high-volume area of past support. A break below could see BTC slide toward $102,000, the 1.618 Fibonacci extension from the 2022 bear market.
Breaching $100,000 would be far more than a technical event. It carries deep symbolic weight as the level long associated with Bitcoin’s “laser eyes” movement, celebrated as a milestone for mainstream adoption. A decisive move below would embolden bearish narratives, including the argument that the long-term cycle top is already in place.
Investor Psychology and Market Sentiment
The dissonance between record adoption and declining prices is shaping investor psychology. Corporate balance sheets have become central to Bitcoin’s story, with CEOs openly declaring that profits are secondary to building massive BTC holdings. As Alexandre Laizet, head of Europe’s largest treasury company, told the crowd in Hong Kong: “The balance sheet is becoming the P&L.”
This mindset reflects a new era of Bitcoin investing, one in which financial engineering and treasury strategies have overtaken grassroots narratives of decentralization and self-custody. For some long-time participants, the shift represents a betrayal of Bitcoin’s original ethos. For others, it is validation of Bitcoin’s mainstream financial integration.
Looking Ahead
As September begins, the spotlight remains firmly on $100,000 support. Holding above this threshold could stabilize sentiment and pave the way for a rebound. Failure to do so risks deepening the correction and reinforcing bearish momentum.
For now, the market appears caught between two realities: one where adoption is accelerating at record speed, and another where technical pressures and investor psychology threaten to drive prices lower. How Bitcoin resolves this tension in the weeks ahead may define not just the rest of 2025, but the trajectory of its next major cycle.
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