BTC pulls back after breakout attempt, but larger move could be in store

Bitcoin BTC$74,179.33 started the day with a promising chance for a breakout, but the rally fizzled out at a familiar brick wall that has kept a lid on prices for more than two months.

After briefly topping $76,000 — a key resistance level — the largest crypto reversed course, slipping below $74,000 later in the session. It still held onto a 1.3% gain over the past 24 hours, recently changing hands near $74,300.

Ether (ETH) followed a similar path, pulling back from above $2,400, but still outperformed, advancing 2.5% daily.

Traditional markets saw no such reversal, with the Nasdaq closing at its session high, up 2%. The S&P 500 rose 1.2% and now stands within a handful of points of hitting a new record high — a sharp contrast to bitcoin, which remains about 40% below its record of $126,000.

Still, the conditions are ripe for a squeeze higher in crypto even as Tuesday’s breakout didn’t hold.

According to Vetle Lunde, head of research at K33 Research, funding rates on Binance’s bitcoin perpetuals have remained negative for 11 consecutive periods despite the recent rally, signaling traders are still leaning bearish even as prices push higher. At the same time, open interest has been rising, suggesting new short positions are being added rather than closed, he said.

That combination has historically set the stage for sharp upside moves, he said.

The 30-day average funding rate has now been negative for 46 straight days, Lunde added, matching the extended bearish positioning seen during past market stress periods, such as after the FTX crash in late 2022 and the mid-2021 bear market when China banned bitcoin mining.

“Comparable risk-off regimes have historically been attractive entry points for BTC,” Lunde said, as crowded short trades were forced to unwind.