Bitcoin’s price action is fueling speculation of market manipulation as the cryptocurrency remains trapped in a tight trading range despite significant institutional inflows.

For more than two months, Bitcoin has been range-bound between $92,400 and $106,500, according to market data.

The cryptocurrency briefly broke out of this range on Jan. 20, following US President Donald Trump’s inauguration, hitting an all-time high of $109,000 before retreating back into its previous boundaries.

The structured nature of Bitcoin’s price movement may indicate artificial suppression, suggested Samson Mow, CEO of Jan3 and founder of Pixelmatic, during a panel discussion at Consensus Hong Kong 2025.

“It seems like some sort of price suppression,” Mow said. “If you look at the price movement, we peak, and then we stay steady and chop sideways. And it’s good—you can say it’s consolidation—but it just looks very manufactured.”

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Mow emphasized that the narrow trading range does not appear natural, raising concerns about potential market interference.

Despite Bitcoin’s temporary lack of upside, industry analysts remain bullish on its 2025 trajectory, with forecasts ranging from $160,000 to beyond $180,000.

Institutional investors and retail buyers continue to accumulate Bitcoin, with US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and firms like Michael Saylor’s MicroStrategy purchasing more than the daily mining supply.

“If Bitcoin’s price isn’t moving despite institutions and retail buyers accumulating BTC, then someone must be selling,” Mow explained. “The price is set at the margin, so that means somebody has to be selling.”

The crypto market is also navigating another key development this week, as FTX begins repaying creditors with over $1.2 billion in distributions.

However, repayments are based on Bitcoin’s November 2022 price—around $20,000—leading some analysts to speculate that recipients may sell their holdings to realize gains, adding downward pressure to the market.

“FTX is starting to pay out their dollars from selling Bitcoin, ill-advisedly, in the mid-20K range, so clearly, somebody is selling to match this. Otherwise, the price would already be moving upwards again,” Mow noted.

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