The Week in Bitcoin - September 7-13, 2026
Bitcoin finished the week lower as hotter U.S. inflation, an oil shock, and rising Fed-hike odds set the tone. The Bitcoin-specific shock was a Liquid sidechain exploit that returned most of the created coins but left nearly 600 Bitcoin withheld.
The Week in Bitcoin
Top story of the week
Liquid exploit leaves nearly 600 BTC withheld after most funds returned
Hackers exploited an inflation bug on Blockstream’s Liquid sidechain to create more than 4,000 LBTC. Most funds were returned, but about 598.5 BTC remained withheld; reports differ slightly on that residual, and recovery timing is unknown. Liquid resumed transactions while peg-outs stayed disabled and Blockstream refused a ransom.
Other headlines this week
Bitcoin falls on Fed-hike bets, then rallies despite hot inflation. It traded below $77,000 after core CPI rose 0.3% in August, then as high as $79,607 despite an estimated 85% chance of higher rates the following week.
Global bond selloff pushes Treasury yields toward 5%. Hotter-than-forecast core CPI made a Fed hike next week nearly certain.
Strategy pauses Bitcoin purchases while repurchasing preferred shares. Strategy repurchased $176 million of STRC, expanded its digital-credit securities repurchase program from $1 billion to $2 billion, and reported 845,050 BTC and $6.5 billion in dollar reserves.
Updated US Clarity Act draft circulates ahead of Senate vote. Senate Republicans circulated a revised draft ahead of the September 15 vote. The bill remains short of the 60 votes needed, and final provisions are not established.
Trezor data breach exposes newsletter customers to targeted phishing. A breach at its Brevo marketing provider let attackers email 347,000 customers from Trezor’s domain; a malicious link sought wallet backups, while Trezor said no other system was touched. The reports do not confirm wallet losses.
Researchers cut estimated resources needed for a quantum attack on Bitcoin keys. The benchmark was less than half Google’s earlier reported level, using different accounting methods. The work is preliminary and does not show that a practical attack is currently possible.
What it means
Houthi attacks prompted Saudi Arabia to shut its East-West crude route as oil traded above $100; oil later declined. Bitcoin fell more than 2% toward $77,208 as coverage linked the move to renewed US-Iran fighting, oil above $105, and rising Fed-hike expectations, without isolating each factor.
Strategy paused Bitcoin purchases, reducing a major source of institutional demand, even as Strive added 1,375 Bitcoin and Capital B bought 376 BTC.
Liquid’s withheld coins, Trezor’s phishing emails, and Revolut’s disclosure that a fraudulent government request exposed customer Bitcoin activity, KYC records, passports, selfies, and home addresses show that holders still inherit operational risk from sidechains, vendors, and identity platforms. No Revolut customer funds were lost.
U.S. market-structure rules for Bitcoin access remain unsettled, with passage, delay, or revision all still possible.
Market Brief
Bitcoin closed the week at $76,769, with a market capitalization of $1.54 trillion and 1,303 sats per dollar.
Bitcoin opened Monday at $80,284 and closed Sunday at $76,769, down 4.38%. The week’s high was $80,296 and the low was $76,700, a $3,596 range.
Bitcoin ground lower from Monday through Thursday. A modest bounce faded by Sunday, leaving the close near the week’s low. Price remained above the short-term holder realized price of $71,100 and the $70,000 bear case.
Seasonal Context
This week’s decline erased September’s early gains, leaving Bitcoin down 2.26% month to date, -2.55 percentage points versus the 0.29% historical median through the same calendar date since 2014.
September has historically been a weak month for Bitcoin, averaging -1.46% across 14 observations from 2012 through 2025, with a median of -2.00%. The past four completed Septembers, 2022 through 2025, averaged 3.24%.
Bitcoin remains down 12.05% year to date, -53.99 percentage points versus the 41.93% historical median through the same date since 2014.
Looking Ahead
Hotter-than-forecast core CPI made a Fed hike next week nearly certain. That decision is a direct input to Bitcoin’s liquidity backdrop. Separately, the crypto industry is awaiting a possible September 15 Senate vote on the Clarity Act.
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Track the data featured in this issue daily using the Secret Satoshis Market Dashboard to stay up to date with Bitcoin market data between issues and explore interactive charts.
Follow Secret Satoshis on X for the latest developments
Track the data featured in this issue daily using the Secret Satoshis Market Dashboard to stay up to date with Bitcoin market data between issues and explore interactive charts.