Bitcoin's rally eased as a $15.6 billion options expiry took effect, while the Ripple token and Solana continued to climb.

On Friday, Bitcoin slipped about 0.9% to roughly $83,600, trimming part of a rally that had carried the token to an intraday high near $87,000. The pullback came as XRP rose 15.45% over seven days and Solana gained 9.33% over the same period, putting both tokens ahead of the broader crypto market. For readers, the session turned less on a one-way move in Bitcoin and more on the mix of derivatives expiry, macro expectations, and fund flows that continue to shape crypto pricing.

Mechanical selling and leverage reset followed a Bitcoin breakout

The weekly move began after Bitcoin emerged from the $75,000 to $81,000 range that had limited it for weeks and touched levels not seen for months. The Friday decline did not immediately change the daily technical picture: the 50-day moving average remained above the 200-day moving average, a golden cross pattern that chart-watching traders still read as bullish.

Some softness aligned with $15.6 billion of Bitcoin options expiring on Deribit. Dealers often unwind hedges after expiry, a routine process that can create price swings without necessarily ending the underlying trend. The market also showed a leverage reset rather than a one-sided liquidation flush: open interest fell 14.39% and 24-hour trading volume fell 13.68%. In the last 24 hours, liquidations totaled $161.96 million in long positions and $156.1 million in short positions.

Macro odds moved after a limited Fed signal

The macro backdrop had been supportive earlier in the week. The Federal Reserve raised rates by 25 basis points on September 16, moving the policy range to 3.75% to 4%, the first hike since 2023. The central bank continued buying short-term Treasury bills to keep bank reserves ample, which reduced the hawkish appearance of the decision and kept risk assets supported.

But the relief faded as officials' projections and comments changed expectations. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's post-meeting dot plot showed a median rate of 4.1% through the end of 2027, implying only one more hike was likely. On September 23, Fed Governor Michael Barr said further policy adjustments are likely needed. The remark came alongside a report showing core PCE inflation at 3.4%, near a four-year high.

As a result, odds of an October hike rose to about 75% on the CME FedWatch tool and 68.5% on Myriad Markets, a reversal from levels seen right after the September meeting. For crypto traders, the key question is not whether Bitcoin held above $83,600 alone, but how inflation and employment data reset expectations for rates into the fourth quarter.

ETF flows cooled while altcoins gained

Spot Bitcoin ETFs added $299.09 million on Friday, a smaller single-day total than earlier in the week. The pattern suggested that the initial buying burst was cooling rather than accelerating. Total crypto market capitalization stood at $2.87 trillion, lower than the $3 trillion-plus level reached earlier this week. The Fear and Greed Index eased to 72 from a peak of 79, still in greed territory but less euphoric.

Most major assets followed Bitcoin lower over the past 24 hours. Ethereum was roughly flat, BNB fell 0.81%, and Tron and Hyperliquid were in the red. The exceptions were XRP and Solana. XRP rose 4.37% over the past day and traded near $1.58, with a market cap of $99 billion. XRP ETFs recorded a nine-day inflow streak worth $1.6 billion in late August, and inflows have continued since. Solana advanced 3.36% on the day and 9.33% over seven days, trading around $119.84 with a $70 billion market cap.

The Solana network's Alpenglow upgrade, which cuts transaction finality to about 150 milliseconds, cleared a validator governance vote with overwhelming support, although its mainnet activation date remains tentative. Spot Solana ETFs from Fidelity, Grayscale, and VanEck, which launched in November 2025, continued to see inflows as the upgrade narrative built.

Next economic dates set the tone for the fourth quarter

The next tests for Bitcoin arrive quickly. September Personal Consumption Expenditures data is scheduled for September 30, followed by the September jobs report on October 2. Both releases can change rate expectations before the fourth quarter. For market participants, the Friday pullback was therefore not only a technical dip after a rally, but a reminder that crypto pricing is being pulled between bullish chart structures, mechanical derivatives flows, cooling Bitcoin ETF demand, and macro data that can reset the path of Federal Reserve policy.