Bitcoin survived the Fed and CLARITY, and now faces the next major test at $82,000 this weekend

Bitcoin hit an intraday high of $81,400 on Friday, approaching the low-$82,000 zone that has capped every recovery attempt since late August.

US spot Bitcoin ETF shares stop trading once American markets close for the weekend. Any further push through that ceiling over the next two days would occur in continuously open crypto markets, without US spot ETF-share trading.

The week's shocks already happened

Bitcoin absorbed two real setbacks before Friday's rebound. The Senate failed to advance the CLARITY Act, and the Federal Reserve delivered its first rate hike in three years, raising its target range 25 basis points to 3.75% to 4.00% on Sept. 16.

Policymakers' projections point toward a 4.1% median rate by year-end. Treasury yields have held near 5%, and oil has stayed above $100, keeping the inflation backdrop unresolved even as Bitcoin recovered.

US spot Bitcoin ETFs took in $433 million on Sept. 18, according to Farside’s latest figures, following $159.5 million in inflows on Sept. 17. Those gains followed $746.3 million in outflows over Sept. 15 and 16.

From the Sept. 18 close near $81,100, the immediate test sits at $82,000 to $82,200, a zone that has repeatedly rejected Bitcoin's advances and now sits roughly 1% to 1.4% away.