Key Takeaways
- • Bitcoin fell below $81,000 on Thursday, with an intraday low of $80,836 during Wednesday's sell-off, even as spot Bitcoin ETFs continued to attract capital.
- • Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $528.4 million in net inflows on Wednesday, per Benzinga data, and more than $1 billion over three consecutive days, per Bitcoin.com News.
- • Crypto liquidations totaled $465.56 million over 24 hours across 103,360 traders, with long liquidations of $427.13 million accounting for most of the losses, according to CoinGlass.
- • Bitfinex analysts said sustained institutional demand is needed to break above $84,000 resistance, and estimated the ETF investor cohort's average cost basis at $84,333.
- • Ethereum, XRP and Dogecoin each fell more than 4% on Thursday, while spot Ethereum ETFs took in $14.96 million on Wednesday.
Summary
Bitcoin (BTC USD) slid below $81,000 on Thursday as the cryptocurrency market came under renewed selling pressure, despite strong inflows into spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds. The price reached an intraday low of $80,836 during Wednesday's sell-off and was trading around the $81,000 level by Thursday, according to supplemental market coverage.
The divergence between ETF demand and spot price was pronounced. Benzinga data showed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $528.4 million in net inflows on Wednesday, and Bitcoin.com News reported more than $1 billion in inflows over three consecutive days. Bitfinex analysts said continued institutional demand would be needed to push Bitcoin above the $84,000 resistance level, and put the estimated average cost basis for the ETF investor cohort at $84,333, a level they flagged as potentially important during any recovery attempt. Sources did not provide a definitive explanation for the lack of follow-through, and one publisher-context piece attributed the stall largely to Federal Reserve policy under Chair Kevin Warsh, describing a hawkish stance, though the original article text was not available for verification.
Leveraged positioning amplified the decline. CoinGlass data showed $465.56 million in crypto positions were liquidated over 24 hours, affecting 103,360 traders, with $427.13 million in long liquidations versus $38.43 million in shorts. Binance accounted for 42.5% of liquidations by exchange share, and the largest single liquidation was an $11.78 million BTCUSDT long position recorded at $83,526.24.
The weakness extended across the market. Ethereum, XRP and Dogecoin each fell more than 4% on Thursday, according to Benzinga, even though spot Ethereum ETFs recorded $14.96 million in net inflows on Wednesday. Analysts note that ETF flows and market prices measure different things, so inflows alone do not indicate a price rise.
Outlook remains uncertain. Trader Benjamin Cowen warned that Bitcoin could fall toward the low-to-mid $70,000s after dropping below $82,000 and failing to reclaim $83,000, as reported by Benzinga. This is presented as a downside scenario rather than a forecast. Traders are watching whether demand strengthens enough to recover the $84,000 resistance level.
The divergence between ETF demand and spot price was pronounced. Benzinga data showed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $528.4 million in net inflows on Wednesday, and Bitcoin.com News reported more than $1 billion in inflows over three consecutive days. Bitfinex analysts said continued institutional demand would be needed to push Bitcoin above the $84,000 resistance level, and put the estimated average cost basis for the ETF investor cohort at $84,333, a level they flagged as potentially important during any recovery attempt. Sources did not provide a definitive explanation for the lack of follow-through, and one publisher-context piece attributed the stall largely to Federal Reserve policy under Chair Kevin Warsh, describing a hawkish stance, though the original article text was not available for verification.
Leveraged positioning amplified the decline. CoinGlass data showed $465.56 million in crypto positions were liquidated over 24 hours, affecting 103,360 traders, with $427.13 million in long liquidations versus $38.43 million in shorts. Binance accounted for 42.5% of liquidations by exchange share, and the largest single liquidation was an $11.78 million BTCUSDT long position recorded at $83,526.24.
The weakness extended across the market. Ethereum, XRP and Dogecoin each fell more than 4% on Thursday, according to Benzinga, even though spot Ethereum ETFs recorded $14.96 million in net inflows on Wednesday. Analysts note that ETF flows and market prices measure different things, so inflows alone do not indicate a price rise.
Outlook remains uncertain. Trader Benjamin Cowen warned that Bitcoin could fall toward the low-to-mid $70,000s after dropping below $82,000 and failing to reclaim $83,000, as reported by Benzinga. This is presented as a downside scenario rather than a forecast. Traders are watching whether demand strengthens enough to recover the $84,000 resistance level.
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