Bitcoin price news: BTC's inflation-adjusted peak this year less impressive than thought

Bitcoin still hasn't hit $100,000 when adjusted for inflation: Galaxy's Alex Thorn The crypto merchant bank's head of research said bitcoin's price in 2020 dollar terms peaked out this year at $99,848. What to know: Bitcoin’s October price spike above $126,000 didn’t break the $100,000 barrier when adjusted for inflation, according to Galaxy Digital's Alex Thorn. Measured in 2020 dollars, bitcoin's high this year was $99,848, said Thorn. U.S. inflation rose about 24% from 2020 to 2025, making nominal price comparisons across years potentially misleading. Bitcoin may have traded above $126,000 in October, but according to Alex Thorn, global head of research at Galaxy Digital, its true value - once inflation is factored in - never crossed the six-figure mark. (Unsplash) See all newsletters “If you adjust the price of bitcoin for inflation using 2020 dollars, BTC never crossed $100K,” Thorn wrote in a post on X . “It actually topped at $99,848 in 2020 dollar terms.” Thorn is pointing out the difference between nominal and real prices. The nominal price reflects what bitcoin cost at the time, in that year’s dollars. The real price, on the other hand, adjusts for inflation - giving a more accurate sense of the asset's purchasing power compared to a constant year like 2020. Why choose the beginning of 2020 as a start? Thorn said that was just before the Fed's big print in response to Covid. Possible takeaways The data could give fodder to both bulls and bears. Bulls might say bitcoin's run higher from the 2022 lows isn't quite as parabolic as previously thought. That might thus suggest a lot less froth at that nominal $126,000 high in October and a lot more room for the bull move to continue. Bears, on the other hand, might say bitcoin's weaker inflation-adjusted performance means the asset isn't living up to its advertising as a hedge against dollar printing. Stick with gold, they might add, though the yellow metal - on a hot run right now - has had its own issues outperforming inflation in recent decades. More For You State of the Blockchain 2025 L1 tokens broadly underperformed in 2025 despite a backdrop of regulatory and institutional wins. Explore the key trends defining ten major blockchains below. What to know: 2025 was defined by a stark divergence: structural progress collided with stagnant price action. Institutional milestones were reached and TVL increased across most major ecosystems, yet the majority of large-cap Layer-1 tokens finished the year with negative or flat returns. This report analyzes the structural decoupling between network usage and token performance. We examine 10 major blockchain ecosystems, exploring protocol versus application revenues, key ecosystem narratives, mechanics driving institutional adoption, and the trends to watch as we head into 2026. More For You Filecoin drops as bears test support The storage token faced selling pressure at the $1.33 resistance level while institutions accumulated on the dips. What to know: FIL declined from $1.32 to $1.29 over 24 hours as a bearish channel pattern emerged....

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