Bitcoin surged to an all-time high of $125,700, according to Coinbase price data displayed on TradingView, fueled by steady inflows into exchange-traded funds during the official United States government shutdown.
Other cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum, XRP, BNB, Solana, Dogecoin and Cardano, saw slight declines. Ethereum dropped 0.44 per cent to $4,563 on Binance data.
Analysts said the rally reflects rising demand for hedge assets amid macroeconomic uncertainty. Geoff Kendrick, global head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered Plc, said the shutdown added momentum: “This time, the shutdown is important.” He noted that during the last US shutdown in 2018–2019, Bitcoin was “in a different place,” trading far below risk assets.
Bitcoin has historically outperformed in October dubbed “Uptober” — with gains recorded in nine of the last 10 years.
According to Glassnode, the amount of Bitcoin on centralized exchanges has dropped to a six-year low of 2.83 million BTC, while CryptoQuant put the figure at 2.45 million BTC, the lowest in seven years. Over the past two weeks alone, 114,000 BTC worth more than $14 billion has been withdrawn from exchanges.
Analysts said the sharp outflows indicate that investors are choosing long-term holding strategies, with coins moving into institutional wallets, treasuries, and self-custody, reducing the supply available for sale and adding to upward pressure on prices.
Meanwhile, US equities climbed to record highs despite weak business activity data, buoyed by major artificial intelligence partnerships and deals. Gold also rose for a seventh straight week as central bank buying increased, supported by declining interest rates and persistent inflation concerns.
