Bitcoin Climbs Toward $85,000 as SpaceX Earnings Reignite Risk Appetite
Key Takeaways
- •Bitcoin rose above $84,500 on Wednesday, gaining 2% in 24 hours and 3% over seven days, as investors poured back into risk-on assets led by technology stocks.
- •SpaceX reported third-quarter revenue of $14.6 billion, up 161% from a year earlier and well above estimates, while owner Elon Musk raised the possibility of a SpaceX-Tesla merger.
- •Bitcoin is exhibiting a dual trading profile this year, moving with the Nasdaq during risk-on sessions while also tracking gold as the debasement trade, a hedge against currency devaluation, gains momentum.
- •Spot bitcoin ETFs managed by BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, and others received more than $549 million in fresh investment on Monday and Tuesday, according to Coinglass data.
- •Bitcoin remains more than 30% below its all-time high of $126,080 set in October 2025, but analysts say the cryptocurrency has re-entered a bull market after most of this year in a bear.
Bitcoin's price climbed above $84,500 on Wednesday as investors poured back into risk-on assets, with technology-related stocks leading the charge.
The leading cryptocurrency recently changed hands at $84,461 after rising nearly as high as $84,588 earlier Wednesday morning in New York. Over the past 24 hours, bitcoin is up 2%, and it has gained 3% on a seven-day timeframe.
JUST IN: $84,003 Bitcoin pic.twitter.com/ht1VmQnDQ5
— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) October 21, 2026https://x.com/BitcoinMagazine/status/2112913597793980538?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Bitcoin's advance came as SpaceX reported surging revenue growth for its third quarter — and as its owner, Elon Musk, floated the possibility of a SpaceX-Tesla merger.
SpaceX, which debuted on the Nasdaq in June in the largest initial public offering ever, reported third-quarter revenue of $14.6 billion on Tuesday, up 161% from a year earlier and well ahead of estimates. Technology stocks rallied on the news.
Bitcoin has historically risen alongside risk assets and traded in correlation with the Nasdaq. This year, however, the original cryptocurrency has moved in step with gold as the so-called debasement trade heats up again — a strategy in which investors buy certain assets to hedge against currency devaluation. That dual profile puts bitcoin in an unusual spot: it can trade like a technology stock during risk-on sessions while at the same time drawing demand from investors seeking shelter from currency debasement.
The dollar slid in value in August after the U.S. Treasury Department said it would more than double the size of its government debt repurchases — operations in which the Treasury buys back outstanding debt to support liquidity in the market for its securities. Bitcoin logged its best quarterly run in three years and its third-best August ever.
U.S. investors have also piled back into spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds this week. On Monday and Tuesday, the funds managed by BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, and others received more than $549 million in fresh investment, according to Coinglass data. The products, which debuted in the U.S. in January 2024, allow investors to gain exposure to bitcoin without holding the asset directly.
Bitcoin's price is still more than 30% below its all-time high of $126,080, set in October 2025. Even so, analysts say the cryptocurrency is back in a bull market after spending most of this year in a bear.
Originally published Bitcoin Magazine, written by Mathew Di Salvo.
