Key takeaways:
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Bitcoin’s failure to rise beyond $118,000 points to strong resistance around this area.
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Bitcoin ETFs recorded six days of consecutive inflows totaling $2 billion.
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BTC strategic reserves and ETF holdings have jumped by 30% in 2025, signaling steady institutional demand.
Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded six days of consecutive inflows, leading traders to believe that its price could rise to $118,000 ahead of the FOMC.
Bitcoin’s “crucial resistance” sits at $118,000
Bitcoin’s 9% rally from its Sept. 1 low of $107,270 stalled around $118,000, suggesting that suppliers are aggressively defending this level.
“Bitcoin is still nicely consolidating,” said MN Capital founder Michael van de Poppe in his latest analysis on X, pointing out that “crucial resistance” remains at $117,500.
“If that breaks, we’ll be in a great territory for a potential new ATH.”
Bitcoin traded at $115,300 on Tuesday, with no clear directional bias as bulls and bears fought for control, data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed.
Traders appeared to be taking a wait-and-see approach as they shifted their focus to the post-FOMC meeting minutes and Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech on Wednesday.
Bitcoin analyst AlphaBTC says price could rise to $118,000 over the next 24 hours before retreating after the FOMC rate decision is confirmed.
📈#Bitcoin LTF game plan 📈
No change to my plan, I still think that 118K level gets taken out in the next 24-48hrs, then we see how much conviction or sell pressure comes in as the FOM Rate Decision is confirmed.
Can #Bitcoin hold 115K post the decision? Or will it sell off… https://t.co/7JleDfrKgR pic.twitter.com/x6d9EB9pTW
— AlphaBTC (@mark_cullen) September 16, 2025
The BTC/USDT liquidation heatmap shows a high concentration of liquidations around $118,000, suggesting that it’s indeed a significant resistance level.
Traders should keep an eye on this area as it could act as a magnet, with the price rising to grab this liquidity before pulling back.
This area “looks really juicy from a liquidity point of view,” said AlphaBTC on Tuesday, adding:
“I still expect we see a run to 118K sooner rather than later, BUT then we may see a further pull back post the Rate decision.”
As Cointelegraph reported, buyers were required to push BTC price above $117,500 to increase the chances of restesting the $124,500 all-time high.
Persistence spot ETF inflows bullish for BTC price
As Bitcoin traders grapple with the potential to resume its recovery, persistent accumulation and buying strength from Bitcoin treasury companies and spot BTC ETFs could provide much of the tailwinds.
Related: Strategy’s Bitcoin stash hits $73B with 638,985 BTC in treasury
Spot Bitcoin ETFs have seen strong inflows for six consecutive trading days, starting with inflows of over $364 million on Sept. 8 and continuing through Monday, with an additional $260 million. In total, over $2 billion in capital moved into Bitcoin ETFs over this period.
“US spot Bitcoin ETFs saw net inflows of ~5.9k BTC on Sept. 10, the largest daily inflow since mid-July,” said market intelligence firm Glassnode in an X post on Monday, adding:
“This pushed weekly net flows positive, reflecting renewed ETF demand.”
Data from BitcoinTreasuries.NET highlights that collective holdings of strategic reserves and ETFs have risen 30% in 2025, climbing to 2.88 million BTC on Tuesday from 2.24 million on Jan. 1. The increase underscores a steady consolidation of BTC supply into the hands of major institutional and corporate players.
Additional data from CoinShares shows Bitcoin dominated capital inflow into exchange-traded products (ETPs) last week, with BTC investment products attracting a total of $2.4 billion in inflows, marking strong institutional investor appetite for the asset.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.