Benzinga - by Murtuza Merchant, Benzinga Staff Writer.
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has plummeted below $61,000 in early Monday morning trading, continuing its downtrend from last week.
What Happened: Bitcoin is down 5% over the past 24 hours, barely hanging on to $61,000 at the time of writing. The latest spike down has liquidated $260 million in long positions over the past 24 hours, with almost $100 million in Bitcoin trades.
Current Market Pressures
According to QCP Capital, Miners are currently under significant pressure to sell due to higher breakeven prices following the recent halving.
Consequently, miner BTC holdings have plummeted to their lowest levels in 14 years, with reserves dropping by 50,000 BTC since the start of the year.
Adding to the market's unease, the German government has reportedly sold around 3,000 BTC recently, with 47,000 BTC still to be liquidated.
This sudden influx of supply has further dampened market confidence.
Also Read: Binance Integrates Tether On TON To Boost User Flexibility
Volatility Market Signals
Despite the short-term drop, QCP Capital remains optimistic about a substantial bullish turn towards the year-end.
The firm’s trading desk has observed significant selling of call options set to expire within a month, coupled with aggressive buying of calls for September to December.
This activity indicates a market expectation of a summer consolidation followed by a dramatic upturn as the U.S. elections approach.
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) continues to show robust bullish sentiment, with its volatility trading at an 18% premium to BTC.
This is fueled by anticipations of an imminent ETH spot ETF launch, which has further bolstered market confidence in ETH’s future performance.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced a net outflow of $106 million as of June 21, marking six consecutive days of outflows, with the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (OTC:GBTC) seeing a single-day outflow of $34.2 million.
Despite these outflows, the total net asset value of Bitcoin spot ETFs remains substantial at $55.5 billion, underscoring the underlying strength and continued investor interest in Bitcoin.
What’s Next:As the cryptocurrency market navigates these turbulent times, the anticipation of regulatory advancements, particularly around the ETH spot ETF, and the broader economic landscape suggest a potentially explosive bullish trend towards the end of the year.
Industry experts and market participants are keenly awaiting the insights and developments that will be discussed at Benzinga’s Future of Digital Assets event on Nov. 19.
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