Quick Read

• A cooler-than-expected inflation report triggered a short squeeze, as forced buying turned modest good news into a powerful crypto rally.

• Bitcoin’s gain rested on steadier ETF and corporate buyers, with spot ETFs drawing $2 billion in five days and Strategy adding 1,665 BTC.

• Futures traders see a 64% chance of another Fed rate hike in October, threatening the altcoin rally that relied on short covering.

In September 2026, Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) experienced a gain of about 7%. While the S&P 500 index barely changed and gold declined by more than 6%, many other major cryptocurrencies outperformed Bitcoin. Notably, NEAR (CRYPTO:NEAR) surged by 186.6%, and Arbitrum (CRYPTO:ARB)…