**Japan's Prediction Market Sees Interest Rate Hike, Bitcoin Falls Again to US$88,000**
Bitcoin opened the week with a drop to US$88,000 on Monday (15/12). This brought the total liquidation to US$220 million, with long positions dominating at US$183 million.
The digital asset is facing significant bearish pressure ahead of the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) policy decision on December 18-19.
Market concerns over a possible 25 bps interest rate hike led to the liquidation of BTC positions worth US$59.88 million, as a rate increase in Japan could potentially strengthen the yen and reduce global liquidity for risk assets.
Additionally, on-chain demand for Bitcoin has weakened since the end of November, with real demand metrics showing negative and short-term holders' realized losses returning to July 2022 levels, indicating panic selling.
Technically, BTC is trading below the 7-day SMA (US$91.2k) and 30-day EMA (US$92.8k), with low volume on the rebound from US$84k, suggesting the rise is largely driven by algorithms, not organic buying.
