Bitcoin Price Prediction: Why BTC Could Drop to $80k

Highlights:

• Bitcoin has fallen back into a multi-week consolidation after a failed breakout
• The breakout failed after President Trump announced new tariffs on Europe
• Panic selling of risk-on assets could cause BTC to drop to $80K or lower

Bitcoin (BTC) is in the red today, reflecting price action across the cryptocurrency market. At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $92,501, down by 2.76%. At the same time, Bitcoin trading volumes have shot up by 98.24% to stand at $32.88 billion.

The surge in trading volumes at a time when the price is going down could point to panic selling. The result of these price dynamics is that Bitcoin could be headed lower in the short term. There are a couple of factors that could be driving the spike in fear, and the potential for further breakdown for Bitcoin in the short term. 

Renewed Trade War Fears Could Trigger BTC Drop to $80K

One of them is the return of trade-war fears that characterized the market in Q1 of 2025. The US and the EU have been embroiled in a tussle over the control of Greenland. In response to the Greenland issue, President Trump has announced that he will be introducing a 10% tariff on the UK, France, Denmark, Finland, Germany, and Sweden, among other key European countries. However, unlike in 2025, when the EU appeared to take a step back from the tariff issues, EU countries are calling for a strong response.

JUST IN🚨: President Trump just dropped a bombshell: 10% tariffs on Denmark, UK, France, Germany + Norway, Sweden, Netherlands, Finland — starting Feb 1. Escalates to 25% June 1. Stays in place until the US secures the "complete and total purchase of Greenland." National security… pic.twitter.com/WhbrtaH3JV

— Officer Lew (@officer_Lew) January 17, 2026

Among the responses they are considering are economic countermeasures they call the trade bazooka. At the same time, they are calling for an activation of the 93 billion Euros in tariffs that were shelved in 2025. This has reignited fear that a full-blown trade war could be underway. The result is that capital is shifting away from risk-on assets to gold and other risk-off assets. The same is reflected in the price of Bitcoin, and the stock markets, which have also started the week in the red. In the trade war materializes, Bitcoin could be headed for prices under $90k in the short term.

BREAKING: Macron Pushes EU 'Trade Bazooka' Against US Over Greenland Threat

Should Trump be concerned? pic.twitter.com/bRBHfsjNkv

— TaraBull (@TaraBull) January 18, 2026

Overleveraged Longs Liquidations Add to Selling Pressure

Bitcoin is also facing significant pressure from liquidations of overleveraged longs. Bitcoin’s recent rally to $94k reignited confidence that a rally back to prices above $100k was coming. This saw billions of dollars in leveraged long positions opened on Bitcoin.

Futures shakeout: $1,493,958 liquidated over the last 90 min.
Longs: $933,066 🔥 | Shorts: $560,891 💥
Binance + Bybit + OKX + Deribit • 1:46AM Jan 19#DUSK #SAND #XMR #SOL #DASH #AXS pic.twitter.com/a1OmnpuPec

— Liquidation Monitor 🤖 (@LiqBotAI) January 19, 2026

With news of a possible trade war between the EU and the US, these longs are being forced to liquidate amid declining prices. The result is an increase in selling pressure on Bitcoin, adding to the already weak price action. Leveraged shorts are also on the rise, seeking to ride the new tariff news. All this selling pressure on Bitcoin could send the price to $85k, or even lower. 

Old Wallets Continue to Sell Bitcoin

There is also the fact that pre-2017 investors continue to exit the market. In 2025, a significant number of these Satoshi-era wallets sold their Bitcoin. This trend continues with the latest old-school investor who sold their Bitcoin holdings after 12 years and booked over 31,000% in profits.

12 years ago, a crypto OG got 5,000 $BTC for just $1.66M (when BTC was $332!).

Today, he sold another 500 $BTC for $47.77M.
Since Dec 2024, he’s already sold 2,500 $BTC for around $265M 🤯

And guess what?
He’s still holding 2,500 $BTC—worth ~$237.5M.

That’s over $500M in total… pic.twitter.com/4Y73FBn1Gw

— Whale Degen (@hiwhaledegen) January 18, 2026

Such moves by early investors could signal that the era of parabolic Bitcoin gains could be over. With Bitcoin now controlled by macro factors, including politics, the odds are high that more of these early investors could exit. The result is that retail FOMO around Bitcoin could also drop, adding to the price weakness, at least in the short term. 

Technical Analysis – Bitcoin Falls Back Into Consolidation After Failed Breakout

For weeks, Bitcoin was stuck in a range between the $94,048 resistance and $85,302 support. Recently, Bitcoin broke out of this range and rallied to $97k. However, Bitcoin lost momentum and fell back into the $94,048 to $85,302 range.

If bears take control due to geopolitical and economic factors, the key level to watch is the $85,302 support level. Breaking this support could push BTC drop to $80K or below. On the other hand, if risk-on assets regain bullish momentum and Bitcoin rallies through the $94,048 resistance, a rally to $105,996 could follow. Of these scenarios, a correction to $80k is more likely due to the escalating tensions between the US and EU.