Bitcoin’s price hovered just above $82,000 on Friday, as rising oil prices and growing concerns over U.S. monetary policy weighed on investor sentiment. By early Saturday, Bitcoin had climbed slightly to $82,674.5, marking a 0.53% gain over the past 24 hours, though it remained down about 1% from its intraday highs.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency faced a challenging week, with a near 3% decline after peaking near $87,000 on Sunday. Rising energy costs and anticipation of higher interest rates contributed to the downward pressure, as investors reassessed the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook ahead of key inflation reports due next week.
Security concerns also dampened market sentiment following reports of missing cryptocurrency linked to Ledger hardware wallets sold through a Southeast Asian reseller. Blockchain investigators estimated potential losses between $86 million and $93.4 million, though Ledger has not confirmed these figures or identified the cause. The company has asked the reseller, CryptoBilis, to halt sales pending an investigation.
Corporate Bitcoin activity remained a focal point, with Strategy’s high-yield preferred shares rising to $99.71 on Friday, their highest level since June. The preferred stock offers a 12% annualized dividend rate, and a move above $100 could enable Strategy to issue additional shares to finance further Bitcoin purchases. Meanwhile, Ether saw a modest 0.29% gain over 24 hours but remained down approximately 7% for the week, underperforming Bitcoin as broader crypto markets struggled to sustain a recovery.